In
Memoriam
Jimmy Greene, one of NJ’s premier pitchers
from the 1980’s and 1990’s passed away on or about December 1, 2011. He
was 56 and he was living in Las Vegas.
Jimmy burst onto the NJ fastpitch scene at the age
of 17. He was considered a phenom at that time. He was to be the next
great one.
Jimmy Greene was one of NJ’s true fastpitch
characters and he did become a very, very good pitcher. If you played
fastpitch in NJ in the 80’s and 90’s the chances are that you played
with Jimmy or against him….maybe both. Chances are that you also drank
plenty of beer with Jimmy and that you had a million laughs with him or
because of him….he loved the spotlight and he made the most of his
moments in the spotlight. Win or lose, Jimmy Greene always had fun
playing fastpitch.
Jimmy Greene loved the game and right now up in
heaven, if there is a game of fastpitch going on, Jimmy is there and he
wants the ball. Jimmy Greene may be gone but his memory will live on in
NJ Fastpitch. Thanks for the memories, Jimmy, we will miss you.
In
Memoriam
Leon Valentine passed away on Christmas Eve,
2011……he was living in North Carolina. There is some doubt about Leon’s
exact age when he passed and that’s probably the way Leon wanted
it…………..a good guess would put him in his mid 60’s.
Leon Valentine played and pitched fastpitch
softball in NJ and it seemed like he had been around forever….he pitched
in the 70’s, the 80’s, the 90’s, the 2000’s and right up to last season.
Leon was the Most Valuable Pitcher of the Class C ASA National
Tournament in 1999 when Vanguard, of Kearney, NJ won the National
Championship.
Leon played for 1 ½ years with The Goal Post in the
late 1980’s….The Goal Post later became Ricola. We remember Leon during
those two years as the guy that was our "Go To" guy…he was always there
when we needed him and he was a pleasure to have on the team in every
way….always smiling, always saying something that would make you laugh
(“you got the bag, I got the bunt”), always making you want to try your
best, and always the guy that seemed to make winning more fun and losing
not quite so bad.
Leon would go anywhere, any time to play fastpitch….his
passion for the game and his passion for his teammates, opponents, and
anyone else in the game was boundless. Leon always gave it all he had
and he had the respect of everyone that came in contact with him both on
and off of the field. Leon was truly one of the game’s ambassadors and
also one of the game’s gentlemen.
We all have stories about Leon Valentine………the
stories as they are told will always put a smile on our faces…….just
like the smile that we will all remember Leon for….. and we will all
remember Leon Valentine.