He still signed free autograph after free autograph, as his players hustled programs. "I'll see a batter come up and, remember something about his stance or something and say, `El Paso, '74, right?' Over the years, the Court played everywhere, with Feigner firing his 100-plus mph heater (once measured at 112 mph) from behind his back, through his legs, from second base and even while blindfolded. The King and His Court got its start the way so many wonderful sagas begin -- in a bar. Now they're all in their 40s. On February 18, 1967, Feigner appeared in a celebrity charity softball game against manyMajor Leagueplayers.in which, Feigner retired from pitching after suffering astrokein 2000 but continued to tour with his team, acting asemceeand telling stories while the team played. They had 4 players and would play teams of 9 guys. So why dont baseball pitchers just throw fast-pitch-softball style if its so effective? Eddie Feigner was a one-of-a-kind person who stood out among all those who played sports. Required fields are marked *, Fast Pitch Softball 1988 Special Tribute To Eddie Feigner The King And His Court, There are heroes and then there are HEROES.and fast pitch softball pitcher Eddie. Kids who are 10 or 11 years old, they click on the boob tube and say why play fastpitch when there's no pro league, you can't get a scholarship offer for it, and I can play baseball, football, basketball and make good money at it? SoftballJunk.com is a great resource to find the perfect fastpitch softball bat just for you!. "No matter what they trained you in, you haven't seen that.". (And don't rule out the Rays grabbing this year's wild card spot yet.) Adding teams to the postseason doesn't increase the tension of pennant races, it diminishes it. Free returns. "I found a way out.". Sign up to receive a daily email of today's top military news stories from Stars and Stripes and top news outlets Add The Fastpitch Softball TV Show to your social network of choice at fastpitch.tv. The King and His court is an extremely entertaining show to go watch! Fr nhere Informationen zur Nutzung Ihrer Daten lesen Sie bitte unsere Datenschutzerklrung und Cookie-Richtlinie. If you live anywhere in the Northwest, go to Walla Walla this Saturday to see the end of an era. Hell, if you live anywhere, get to Walla Walla. Feigner was born in Walla Walla, Wash., on March 26, 1925. Sem a necessidade de instalar ou se inscrever 209 Softball Academy Podcast | Hitting Philosophy. I can only imagine he was something to have watched. Feel free to use this content, in whole or in part, in any manner you like so long as you give credit to Gary leland, Fastpitch.TV and link to fastpitch.tv. And there were not enough bare-chested women, though there were a few of those, too. Many of them were major league players. This Space For Rent Stadium, Florida. It was a mismatch, Feigner said in an interview with a publication of the Loma Linda University Adventist Health Science Center. During one game, Feigner had easily beaten a team from Oregon 33-0. He even pitched blindfolded from second base for one inning. The Marlins will be hard-pressed to equal their two World Series championship at their new ballpark that opens next season. Into that steel trap memory delves Feigner, 65, a fastpitch softball trouper for some 44 years. 2023 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. So, thank you for showing others what a great athlet he was. Yankee Stadium, New York: 79 The Ballpark in Arlington, Texas: 77 I remember seeing them in commericals as a kid, pretty sure it was Bud or Lite Beer commericals. Later, Booth, who was recruited by Feigner out of the Army at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, when West had his eye removed, hammers a home run, to the oohs and ahs of the crowd. Hoppe has fought his own wars away from the diamond, on the battlefields of Vietnam and in the darkest trenches of his personal life. "Hollywood missed a hell of a story. Eddie Feigner in 1983. 23K 2.9K comments The King and His court is an extremely entertaining show to go watch! Someone like Feigner who can throw a softball 100mph with accuracy is going to strike out a lot of batters. Yes, he faced the Cubs. All contents 2023 The Slate Group LLC. In international competition, the pitchers plate (or rubber, as baseball fans know it) is only 43 feet from home plate. I never forgot that day, and how Eddie pitched. We have everybody falling all over themselves wanting to play us, we've struck out Willie Mays and Ted Williams, for 20 years the word is out, nobody can beat us. Poster promoting Eddie Feigner's "King and His Court.". All Rights Reserved. Insulted, Feigner bet the guy he could beat his team with just four players -- himself, a catcher, a first baseman and an infielder. 255) may be the equivalent of the high school annual photo. They started their first cross-country tour. Nobody could even touch the ball. But the week's most interesting line was by Philadelphia's Roy Oswalt, who officially started games on consecutive days and didn't allow a run in either. They wore patriotic-looking uniforms and blended vaudeville bits into their ballgames. ". My dad took me to that game at what is now Modern Woodman Park on river front. He was part of more than 56 foreign tours. If you haven't seen the King and His Court, well, it's your own damn fault. I saw the King and his Court in Jasper, Alabama in the early 1960s. Softball never had the following or respect of Major League Baseball. That was the beauty of the team. It would be really fun to watch videos of some of that stuff. The Court has been around since the Chicago Cubs still were the reigning National League champs, and it has played in nearly 4,000 cities and in more than 150 countries. Jim Caple is a senior writer for ESPN.com. You'll need it. He is Rich Hoppe -- Bayonne native and pitcher for the King and His Court, the iconic four-man barnstorming softball team. Register Log in Dec 30, 2021 #1 Hillhouse Aug 21, 2008 2,053 113 Why You've Never Heard of the Best Athlete Ever Dec 30, 2021 #2 Rolling Hard Apr 20, 2018 3,842 113 SoCal I never saw him and his court, but I can imagine it was quite an experience. He was a hard-boiled egg. Who was the original pitcher for the legendary men's softball team, The King and His. The four players of the King and His Court easily beat the nine-player prison team 7-0. If you have a few young girls/guys looking to get into baseball or softball then taking them to one of these games would be. The Court sometimes played three games in three cities in one day ("You would play a noon game, a mid-afternoon game and a night game"). included in the interview is Leslie Barber, Charlie Dobbins, Dave Booth, Bob Hale, Ron Davenport and Michael Branchaud. He was able to hit the ball as well as he could pitch it. Your email address will not be published. from around the world. He was amazing. The rottenest thing to happen to softball was moving back the mound from 43 to 46 feet" in 1949, Feigner said, adding it was done because a few pitchers tended to dominate batters from the closer distance. Top softball pitchers like Jennie Finch can throw roughly 70 miles per hour, the equivalent of a low-90s fastball thrown from 60 feet away. Host virtual events and webinars to increase engagement and generate leads. 1983 The King and His Court ~ 4-Man Softball Team ~ Signed Autographed Program. Feigner died in 2007, but his team has continued on without him, like the Glenn Miller Orchestra or Lynyrd Skynyrd (roughly three dozen players have played for the Court over the years). Feb. 13, 2007. Eddie Feigner passed away on February 9, 2007, from complications associated with dementia. I guess in order to even make contact with the ball, you'd have to start your swing before he even released it and trust that it would be somewhere in the strike zone. Feigner and his team, known as the King and His Court, traveled around the world with a flamboyance that recalled the barnstorming teams assembled by Babe Ruth and that perhaps most resembled basketballs Harlem Globetrotters. Camden Yards, Baltimore: 92 He just made me better," Hoppe said. In 2002, ESPN.com listed Feigner as one of the 10 greatest pitchers in a list that included Walter Johnson and Sandy Koufax. This Amateur Softball Association (ASA) had forbidden its members to play against Eddie Feigner and his team. You get to touch people and leave them with a message.". And maybe he deserved it. Basketball has the Harlem Globetrotters. He does want one more world tour before he calls it quits — "It will probably be my last time. Sponsored. Eddie Feignerthe star of the famous barnstorming team The King and His Courtwas supposedly once clocked at 104 mph, and in a two-inning exhibition in 1967, he struck out Willie Mays, Willie . "The day of the barnstormer is buried this Saturday.". Free 3 day shipping. Feigner had an exaggerated windup and he would do things like pitch blindfolded, or pitch an inning from behind second base. He took her last name and the name Eddie from a friend. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. After making a name for himself in the 1970s as a premier men's fast-pitch softball pitcher, Hoppe re-joined the King in the 1980s and has been in the signature red, white and blue uniform ever since. 208 Softball Academy Podcast | Athlete Goals. Due to a planned power outage on Friday, 1/14, between 8am-1pm PST, some services may be impacted. Granted, American softball players are the best in the world. He couldn't be a showman and entertainer as well as an athlete if he played professional sports. Upon returning home after two years at war, Hoppe opened a bar in Bayonne and began attending night school. In softball, there are no famous hitters, only famous pitchers. When joining the Marines during World War II, he had to find details of his birth. In this years Olympics, there were 19 games that didntinclude weak sisters Greece and Italy. 7. Too dumb to quit, he growled. The Yankees rewarded the biggest star in the their history with a 30 percent paycut. ", You know the rules. By Douglas Martin. Many writers and others in the sports world have considered Eddie Feigner to be the best softball pitcher the sport has ever known. Enthralled by what he saw, Hoppe hooked up with Feigner's crew for Midwest tours the following two summers. But if youd like to know what the game was like around 1900, Olympic softball is probably a better analogue than the current iteration of Major League Baseball. SPORTS LEGEND Eddie Feigner was the King And His Court a Professional Softball. HubPages is a registered trademark of The Arena Platform, Inc. Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. It must be fun facing a blindfolded pitcher from 45 feet who can fire the ball faster than 100 mph. Yet, "It's like Bob Feller said: `I can still throw as hard as I ever did. "How did you remember that?" He is a member of theBaseball Reliquary. In those games, an average of 3.8 runs were scored per seven innings. 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