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The Story
-- the softball career of Walter Wolff --
-- an incredible journey spanning 6 decades --
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for larger image)
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There
once was a tall, skinny kid from Bellaire. With a natural gift of
athletic prowess, he was, like a lot of his teenage buddies at the time,
very involved in organized sports. 
A
key influence in those days shortly after the second World War was the
Catholic Youth Organization (CYA), where he played both basketball and
softball. It was at this very young age when he discovered his special skills
for the sport of fast-pitch softball (and who'd even HEARD of "slow-pitch"
in those days?). His very first softball team was a team called the
Conoco Juniors, sponsored by a Conoco gas station. He started playing
in the Houston Chronicle softball tournament, an annual end-of-summer event
sponsored by the local newspaper, at the young age of 16.
Many
teams and many years later, Walter Wolff was beginning to make a name for
himself and was quickly becoming to be known as one of hottest young softball
pitchers in the state of Texas. 
By
the time he was 25, he had never lost a Houston Chronicle tournment game,
and had won 22 straight tournament games. One of his first glorious
successes in the limelight was in 1959, when he received the Houston Chronicle
tournament's Outstanding Pitcher Award. His
Metallic Steel Building team were Houston Chronicle champions
in 1966. His 6ft.-6in., 240lb. mound presence and 80mph pitches
brought fear to the average batter. He became widely known for his
trademark toothpicks, that he chewed on the mound while pitching. Perfect
games and no-hitters were becoming commonplace, and strikeouts were so
numerous, oftentimes surpassing 15 in a typical 7-inning game, that it
was virtually impossible to keep track of them all. Although career
statistics are unavailable, by the end of the 1968 season, Walter had played
in 9 successive American Softball Association (ASA) state championship
tournaments and had compiled a major city win-loss record of 461-53, while
averaging 12 strikeouts per game. During the next 3 seasons ('69-'71),
he won 89 games and lost only 33, while recording 37 shutouts.
Another defining moment of Walter's career was the time his team played the world-famous pitcher Eddie Feigner and his 4-player "King & His Court" softball team in the Houston Astrodome. Eddie, who is generally regarded as the best fastpitch pitcher in the world and who has been doing world tours for over 50 years, has gained quite an astounding reputation for his pitching showmanship, including being able to pitch behind his back, through his legs, blindfolded, and even from 2nd base. His 4-player team usually has no problem beating regular 9-player teams.
If there is any one term that most aptly describes Walter's softball career, it would be "staying power." He continued his career well into his 60's, being active in Old-Timer's softball (45 years and older) and playing mostly with Houston's Latin American teams in his later years. Interviewed during the 1988 Chronicle tournament, it was disclosed that he had played in every Chronicle Tournament since 1947.
The
first step onto the world stage came in 1961 when Walter's Jackson Sporting
Goods team won the ASA state softball
championship
in San Antonio, Texas. He was the winning pitcher in the final
game and was named to the all-tournament team. Winning the state championship
qualified them for a trip to the ASA World Softball Tournament in Clearwater,
Florida in September. 
In
30 innings of pitching in Florida, Walter gave up only 4 runs and won a
15-inning game against Mesa, Arizona. His Jackson Sporting Goods
team repeated as state champions again in 1963 and won another trip to
the ASA World Softball Tournament in Clearwater.
Other major softball tournaments Walter has played in include:
| " I went to the Lake
Charles tournament in '65 when Walt threw an absolutely dominant
no-hitter against a good Yazoo team out of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I don't think any of their generally good hitters got the ball out of the infield. Walter's rise ball looked like a flat rock skipping off of a pond. He had it really jumping and the Yazoo guys were so far off of it (under it, naturally) they couldn't get a good idea on how to adjust." Lynn Meeks, former Bell Bonding teammate |
On October 10, 1986, Walter was inducted into the Softball Hall of Fame in a ceremony in Houston, Texas.
Not only did Walter Wolff play in numerous prestigious tournaments on American soil, but he also had opportunities to display his skills and spread softball camaraderie in international settings as well. He played 3 times in Mexico, including in Mexico City, Tampico, and the Mexican National Softball Tournament in Poza Rica in 1970. Impressing the local fans with his blazing pitching, he was once featured on the front page of a newspaper's sports section with these headlines -- "El Lobo Does it Again" (Lobo means "wolf" in Spanish).
Even
more impressive was his tour of New Zealand as a member of the Western
U.S. All Stars in February, 1974, traveling from city to city and playing
the best teams in New Zealand, which is widely recognized as a dominate
power in world softball. Later that same year in July, the United
Softball Club of Auckland, New Zealand sponsored a tour of the U.S. by
their team. While in Houston, Walter's construction company served as the New Zealand team's
local host and made all their arrangements, even sponsoring some of their
festivities, including a big party thrown at the Wolff household.
The following are the words of Jack Shanks, the New Zealand team's organizer, as recorded in his club's report of their 1974 U.S. tour:
"Arrived in Houston to be met by those wonderful people Nora and Walter Wolff. These people could pass as New Zealanders. The temperature was 95 degrees F., humidity about 70%, very hot, and as we walked into the bus, were served a cold glass of beer out of a 9-gallon keg in a drum of ice.
Things like this explain about these people who think of everything. We were put up in a very new and modern motel which was top class. On Friday night, we were treated to being taken to the Houston Astrodome for a game of Houston Astros baseball. This is truly a great sight and shouldn't be missed by anyone traveling to the States.
On Saturday, we played very well to win 7-1. Following the game, Nora and Walter put on a real N.Z. party at their house. Words are hard to find to thank these people for such a warm gathering and a great party. I am sure that all team members will always remember that night. Nora went to a tremendous amount of trouble to present an enormous meal of New Zealand foods, and to feed 80 odd people speaks for itself.
On behalf of all members to Nora and Walter Wolff, thanks a million."
Jack Shanks
United Softball Club of Auckland, New Zealand
January 13, 1975
(Click
on the photo to see the team picture)
As a result of all his hospitality, Walter was inducted as an Honorary Member of the United Softball Club of Auckland, New Zealand in 1974. The letter of appreciation he sent to the United Softball Club is shown here.
RISE
BALL -- In many respects, Walter's rise ball is basically
an underhanded version of baseball's curve ball. The grip is almost
identical, with the index and middle fingers aligned up next to the seams
at their narrowest point. Just before the ball is released at the
bottom of the windmill windup, the wrist must tilt slightly sideways before
it snaps to direct the ball in a back-spinning, upward trajectory. In
so doing, the softball is released with all 4 seams at their widest point
rotating end over end so as to get the most wind resistance possible. Wow,
you should have seen this baby hop during the guy's prime. Talking
about some baffled batters.......
DROP
BALL -- As explained by Walter, the grip for the drop ball
is not so critical, as long as the ball is released off the fingertips,
again so that all 4 seams at their widest point are rotating end over end
-- only in this case, obviously in a rotation opposite that of the rise
ball, giving it a forward-spinning, downward trajectory. In his case,
he grips the ball with his index finger cocked back and with the index
fingernail planted against a seam, to give it more control. The most
critical thing about the delivery of the drop ball is that the foot which
is planted just prior to the release of the ball (the left foot for right-handed
pitchers) should take a slightly shorter step (about one-half of a foot-length)
than with a regular pitch. This places the upper body in a more slightly
forward, off balance posture, giving more power to the actual drop ball
delivery, accentuating its downward trajectory.
Additional Drop Ball tips from the Fall '67 edition of "Softball Illustrated," the nation's first softball magazine can be found here.
Notes:
(1) All of the small thumbnail photos on this page are clickable, opening up into a larger image......
(2) Background music: one of Walter's favorite songs, "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash
