At softball league where minimum age is 58, genteel camaraderie mingles with steely competition

BROOKHAVEN, New York -- Clanks of metal bats ring out at the Moriches Athletic Complex as the Suffolk Seniors Softball League takes over the ballfields on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The conference consists of 25 teams made up of men and women who are, at minimum, 58 years old. It's a hot ticket for raucous retirees in and around Brookhaven, on New York's Long Island.

"This is the most robust and vibrant senior softball program in all of the state of New York," said Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Pancio.

He hammers home the impressive level of talent, insisting that "if you took people half their age and put them on the field - just picked them out of the public - couldn't play softball as well as this competitive league."

Eddie McElroy loves suiting up for his team, Momo's Raiders.

"It's the most fun of my life. My wife doesn't like it. She thinks I'm going to come home injured all the time. But we just take care of ourselves and we do pretty well," he said.

The fun and camaraderie are palpable in the dugouts, but things are serious on the diamond. Raiders manager Bill DeSanto explains how "we want to win. It's a gentleman's game but we still want to win."

DeSanto motivates his team by staying positive and keeping things light. Singing the praises of one of his best players, Bill says" "When you leave this world, the (headstone) inscription's not going to have the date you were born and died. It's going to have your on-base percentage."