Offseason Workouts Nearing Completion for Balls Deep Squad

The wait is almost over. The Balls Deep softball squad will take the field on June 10th, kicking off what is sure to be another season filled with record-breaking fan attendance. After their championship run last season, Diamond Sports Park representatives suggested Balls Deep move to the Gainesville city league to alleviate the traffic problems caused by fans swarming the softball complex hoping to catch a glimpse of their softball heroes each Tuesday night. Business owners in downtown Gainesville had also complained that Balls Deep softball games were causing their normal Tuesday crowds to disappear. Local restaurant owner Rick Wilhelm said he had considered shutting down Magical Fruits, an all-you-can-eat beans restaurant in downtown Gainesville. "We just couldn't compete with slow-pitch softball. Balls Deep literally had 90% of the Gainesville population trying to scalp tickets for their games", said Wilhelm. He continued on saying, "With their move into the city league, the crowds should pick up. We'll be carrying the games live in our bar area, so that should help business".

As for the team, they haven't let their spring league championship go to their heads. Outfielder Casey Hahn said, "If you think I'm satisfied after that season, you're kidding yourself. People would kill to be on this team, and you can't take that for granted". Hahn said he had taken a few weeks to go back to his roots in Illinois to get a jump-start on training. He spent most of May back at the Hahn family dirt farm, where his dad grows and sells piles of dirt throughout Northern Illinois. Hahn said 14 hour days of moving dirt with bare hands were the norm back home. "I feel like moving random piles of dirt with my hands really will give me great wrist strength and bat speed for this season", said Hahn. With high gas prices and his training in full-swing, Casey also told reporters he was planning to bear crawl back to Florida from Illinois to end his offseason training program.

Leftfielder Ric Charris has been in the local gym trying out an interesting offseason workout. Charris really felt like his body broke down towards the end of last season. Talks of a trade began swirling when Charris ended the season leading the league in throwing errors. After completing workouts at the University of Florida Sports Medicine Institute, it was determined Charris was suffering from severe dehydration for the better part of the past two years. Charris explained, "I had always been a fan of camels as a youngster, and kind of just figured people could store a bunch of water in their back too. I haven't had a sip of water since early 2006 based on this water storing theory I had". Needless to say, Charris spends the majority of his gym time at the water fountain and harassing a good majority of the female clientele. It remains to be seen if this type of training will pay off, but one thing is for sure: Ric Charris will be properly hydrated.

Starting shortstop Brad Weitekamp has been spending most of his days working with local slow-pitch softball scout, Evan Stone. Stone has become legendary for his training techniques that combine the philosophies of karate with traditional slow-pitch softball training drills. Stone said he has been impressed with Weitekamp's ability to master the "Sleeping Flamingo" drill over the past few weeks. This drill is where an individual will take batting practice blindfolded while standing on one leg. Weitekamp commented, "I thought the flamingo costume Evan made me wear was a little overkill, but this is why he gets paid the big bucks". Stone said, "If Brad isn't best pure hitter in the City League this year, I'll be shocked. Once he put that flamingo costume on, he put on quite a show last week".

Gametime for next week's opening game still has not been announced. There will be a short ceremony before the first pitch to present Balls Deep with their championship rings. The game is scheduled to be covered live by ESPN to a national TV audience, with a 3 hour tape-delay for our Hawaii and New Zealand viewers.