Lima Steele's were a professional

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

team based in

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75 approximately north of Dayton, Ohio, Dayton, southwest of Toledo, Ohio, T ...

. Lima Steele's played at the baseball diamond on the campus of the

Ohio State University at Lima The Ohio State University at Lima (Ohio State Lima) is a regional campus of Ohio State University in Lima, Ohio. It offers over 140 courses and 9 bachelor degree programs in science and liberal arts. Nine of eleven programs are four-year programs ...

in the United Professional Softball League (UPSL) in 1982.

League history

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, men's professional softball leagues were formed in the United States to build on the growth and talent in the booming men's amateur

game during this period. The American Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL) was the first such league, launching in an era of experimentation in professional sports leagues. The APSPL was formed in 1977 by former

World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest t ...

front-office executive Bill Byrne, who would go on to found the Women's Professional Basketball League. Former New York Yankees star

Whitey Ford Edward Charles "Whitey" Ford (October 21, 1928 – October 8, 2020), nicknamed "the Chairman of the Board", was an American professional baseball pitcher who played his entire 16-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...

was the first APSPL commissioner. In 1980, three teams, Fort Wayne, Milwaukee and Cleveland broke away to form the North American Softball League (NASL) under the leadership of

Ted Stepien Theodore J. Stepien (June 9, 1925 – September 10, 2007) was an American businessman who owned the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1980 to 1983. Born in Pittsburgh in 1925, he became wealthy as the founder ...

, who owned 6 of the 8 teams in the league (only the Fort Wayne Huggie Bears and Milwaukee Schlitz had non-Stepien ownership), while the APSPL continued with just 6 teams. The NASL lasted one season. In 1981 the APSPL merged with NASL to create the United Professional Softball League (UPSL), but only the Milwaukee franchise came from the NASL to the new league as the other NASL teams folded. The merged league competed for two seasons, before disbanding after the 1982 season, ending the pro era of men's softball. Lima Steele's, named for the Steele's Sports Company, was a long-time power in amateur softball and entered the professional ranks in 1982, the last season of the USPL.

Lima Steele's

The powerhouse reputation of Lima Steele's got off to an early struggle as the team tried to find a home. The team had initially planned to play at Simmons Field in Lima, but the Lima school board denied the permit due to the Steele's desire for alcohol sales at games. The team was forced to play some early season games at Vic Lyons Field in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...

before finding a home on the campus of Ohio State University at Lima. Lima Steele's struggled with the jump to professional play, finishing the 1982 USPL season 20-38 (.348), 4th in the Western Division, 16.5 games behind the

Kentucky Bourbons The Kentucky Bourbons were a professional softball team that played in two men's professional softball leagues between 1977 and 1982 at Bishop David Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. The Bourbons, Cincinnati Suds and Pittsburgh Hardhats were the ...

. Milwaukee would defeat

Detroit Softball City Detroit Softball City was a professional softball team that played during the 1982 season in the United Professional Softball League (UPSPL). Detroit Softball City played at and was named for a large recreational softball complex on the grounds of ...

5–1 in the finals behind the hitting of World Series MVP Dick Laba (16-24, .667 BA). Dana Andry of the

Cleveland Competitors The Cleveland Jaybirds (1977–78), later named the Cleveland Stepien's Competitors (1979–80) and finally the Cleveland Competitors (1982), were a professional softball team that played in three professional softball leagues between 1978 and 198 ...

was the USPL MVP. Amateur softball legend, Andrew "Mighty Joe" Young (.476, 40 HRs, 106 RBIs) of Lima, lived up to the hype and made the all-pro team for 1982. Lima also featured Eric Thornton, brother of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player

Andre Thornton André Thornton (born August 13, 1949), nicknamed "Thunder", is an American former professional baseball player and business entrepreneur. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman and designated hitter from to , most prominently as ...

, pro softball veterans Mike LaFever and Cardell Collins, along with former MLB player Ralph Garr. The USPL disbanded after the 1982 season with players returning once again to the amateur ranks.

Lima Steele's record

References

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External links

Softball History Data Softball History USA Detroit Caesars Online Home National Softball Hall of Fame
Softball teams Men's professional softball teams Sports teams in Ohio