Best Men's Softball Players of All Time (2024)

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Softball is not as popular a sport as baseball, but that doesn’t mean players can’t achieve amazing feats. Many men’s softball players have made names for themselves by dominating the diamond, and we highlight a few of them here. Read on to learn about the three best men’s softball players of all time and a few honorable mentions.

Who Are the Best Men’s Professional Softball Players of All Time?

1. Mike Macenko
2. Bruce Meade
3. Rick Scherr
4. Eddie Feigner
5. Ken Eriksen
6. Craig Elliott
7. Jeff Wallace
8. Charles Wright
9. Dirk Androff
10. Rusty Bumgardner

1. Mike Macenko

• Inducted into the NSA Hall of Fame on November 11, 1998
• Inducted into the ISA Hall of Fame on December 4, 1998
• One of two players to ever make all four major Associations’ Halls of Fame (NSA, ISA, USSSA, and ASA)
• Accumulated close to 7,000 home runs over a 25 year span (247 HRs per year)
• Began the NSA World Series with 21 straight hits

When it comes to deciding who the greatest men’s softball player of all time is, Mike Macenko is on top of everyone’s list.Macenko is from Brook Park, Ohio. He started playing baseball at the age of seven. After playing at the varsitylevel, he decided to change it up a bit. It was at this point that he joined a soft-pitch softball league in his hometown, never looking back. Macenko, better known as “Miken Pro,” has left his legacy on the softball field. Despite softball being more commonly played by women, Macenko’s style and swagger are idolized by all kinds of people.

Softball fans know about Macenko’s tremendous slugging ability, yet many forget how rarely he failed to reach base. In 1988, the star softball player hit 830 long balls, drove in 1,667 runs, and hit for an astonishing .745 batting average. He led his team to the ISA World Series that season, where he was titled the “Home Run King.” Macenko went 23-25 and hit 13 home runs during the five-game series. Once Macenko reached 844 career home runs, he was put into the Guinness Book of World Records. The star retired with a remarkable .721 batting average and approximately 7,000 home runs. Macenko was unanimously selected to All-American and All-World Teams 34 times.

Arguably Macenko’s greatest and least talked about accomplishment was the impact that he had on his team. Thanks to his leadership and on the field production, Macenko carried his team to 143 consecutive victories in 1990. Mike Macenko’s legacy will live on forever.

2. Bruce Meade

• Longest recorded home run in a slow-pitch softball game (510 ft)
• Hit for more than 3,500 career home runs
• 11-time All-American
• Two-time National Championship MVP (1977 and 1982)
• Played in 16 national championship games

When talking about the greatest men’s softball players of all time, Bruce Meade is always mentioned.Meade is from Bradenton, Florida, the hometown of several professional athletes. When on the field, Meade was not hard to spot. Standing at 6’6 and weighing 265 lbs, Meade stood out like a deer in headlights. He was also very well known for his curled mustache.

During his professional career, Meade played for some of the nation’s most elite slow-pitch softball teams. His teams included Elite Coatings, Starpath, and Warren Motors in his home state of Florida. Towards the end of his career, Meade consolidated his legacy. During his last Super National Championship in 1993, he hit for a remarkable .727 average and racked up 10 home runs to go along with 19 runs batted in. Well after his playing days, he was honored during the 2016 Border Battle in Canada, where he served as an honorary captain. Bruce Meade will forever be remembered for his tremendous accomplishments and unique physique.

3. Rick Scherr

• 14 World Series Appearances (Six-time World Champion)
• Accumulated 451 HRs in one year (world record)
• Nicknamed “The Crusher”
• Hit for over 1,800 HRs in USSSA Tournament play
• Voted the Top Player of the Decade (1980s)

Rick Scherr was well known for his large stature.Scherr stood at 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighed 300 lbs at one point during his professional career. His big body contributed to his surreal power numbers, which led to his nickname, “The Crusher.” Rick “The Crusher” Scherrmay be discussed in the same conversation as some of the greatest athletes in sports history. His father, Adam, is also known for his exceptionally large body. Listed at 6’8”and 385 lbs, Adam Scherr won several national competitions in strongman events and was a WWE superstar.

It is safe to say that Adam passed along his genes to his son, Rick. According to the Las Angeles Times, Scherr knocked a 12-inch softball out of every major league baseball stadium he was in. There are many that believe Scherr would have been a Major League Baseball player if he did not have off-the-field issues. Scherr left his legacy on the softball field and will be talked about as one of the all-time greats forever.

4. Eddie Feigner

• 104-mph recorded underhand fastball
• Played in all 50 states and 98 foreign countries
• 9,743 wins and 141,517 strikeouts

Eddie Feigner was a famous entertainer and possibly the best softball pitcher of all time. Following service in the Marines during World War II, Feigner founded a four-man traveling softball team in 1946 called “the King and His Court.” They first played against local teams in the Pacific Northwest but soon toured all over the country. The team only fielded a pitcher, catcher, first baseman, and shortstop, and they entertained the fans while typically defeating their local team.

The King and His Court often played against military opponents in honor of Feigner’s time in the Marines. In a charity softball game in 1967, he struck out seven MLB sluggers in a row, including Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente. His son, Eddie Jr., played alongside him for over 25 years, and at the height of his popularity in the 1960s, Feigner earned over $100,000 per month playing softball. He died in 2007 and was inducted into the Baseball Reliquary's Shrine of the Eternals in 2013.

5. Ken Eriksen

• Two-time Sun Belt Conference Championship winner
• 1997 ASA Men’s Fastpitch Championship winner
• .315 career batting average and 2.48 ERA

Ken Ericksen is a former college and professional softball player who went on to a prolific career as a softball coach.In college, he played for the University of South Florida, taking the Bulls to two Sun Belt Conference championships. After college, he was signed by the Clearwater Bombers, an American Softball Association (ASA) team.

As a pitcher and a catcher, Eriksen also played for the Larry Miller-Toyota and Tampa Smokers ASA teams. He played for the US Men’s National Softball Team in the 1991 Pan American Games, bringing home a silver medal. Following this performance, he was named a First-Team All-World catcher in 1992. In his final year as a player, Eriksen led the Smokers to the 1997 ASA Men’s Fastpitch championship. He had already begun assistant coaching at South Florida and moved up to the head coach position in 1997, one he still occupies.

6. Craig Elliott

• Named to the USSSA All-World team six times between 1981 and 1988
• Named to the NSPC All-Tournament team four times from 1979 through 1983
• Three-time Smoky Mountain Classic MVP
• 8,289 at-bats, 5,708 hits, 4,913 home runs, .688 batting average

Nicknamed “Crankin’ Craig” for the sheer power and number of his hits, Craig Elliott is often considered one of the best softball players of all time.Hailing from Wadley, Alabama, Elliott played three sports in high school: baseball, football, and basketball.However, he had been playing softball since the age of 12, and by age 19, he managed to begin playing professionally.

Elliott played for a variety of teams, most notably Steele's Sports, which later named a bat, the “Elliott,” after him.At the end of his career, Elliott had amassed an astonishing 8,289 at-bats, 5,708 hits, 4,913 home runs, and a .688 batting average.He was inducted into the USSSA Hall of Fame in 2011.

7. Jeff Wallace

• USSSA Hall of Famer (Class of 2007)
• NSA Hall of Famer (Class of 2004)
• Three-time Smoky Mountain Classic MVP
• 5,648 at-bats, 4,357 hits, 1,836 home runs, .771 batting average

Jeff “Zoomer” Wallace is a USSSA and NSA Hall of Fame softball player.Raised in Phoenix, New York, Wallace played baseball in high school, and first started playing slow pitch softball in 1988, working hard to improve his game until he finally broke into major success in 1996.Around that time, he gained his well-known nickname, “Zoomer,” after hitting home runs that were said to zoom out of the ballpark.

Wallace played for multiple softball teams, including Pace Electronics, Steele's Hitmen, Team TPS, and Resmondo.Over the course of his career, Wallace managed 5,648 at-bats, 4,357 hits, 1,836 home runs, and a .771 batting average.He has been a part of NSA Major World Series winning teams, and is part of both the USSSA and NSA Halls of Fame.

8. Charles Wright

• Four-time Smoky Mountain Classic MVP
• Jerome Earnest Player of the Century
• 1986 National SloPitch Player of the Year

Charles Wright was one of the greatest softball players of the 1980s and 90s.He was mainly known for being one of the best hitters that Steele’s Hitmen had ever seen, playing for the team from 1973 to 1997. He even led them in homeruns in 1986, scoring an impressive 503 HRs in just a single season.

Thanks to his hitting skills and his defensive power as a third baseman, Charles “Georgia Peach” Wright also received many major softball awards. These included being named to the Jerome Earnest All-Decade Team for both the 80’s and 90’s and even being named to a Jerome Earnest Player of the Century.

9. Dirk Androff

• Named to 23 All-World teams
• Three-time National MVP (1991, 1992, 1993)
• ISA, NSA and USSSA Hall of Famer (2001, 1998, 2014)
• 5,300 at-bats, 1,864 hits, 1,844 home runs, .730 batting average

Known by many as “The Master Blaster,” Dirk Androff’s softball career was unfortunately cut short due to his tragic passing in 1997, but he nevertheless managed to tremendously impact the game in his short time playing.Starting out in 1988, Androff became known for his incredible ability to hit with power. A great lover of softball, Androff gave up a comfortable teaching career to play the game.

Androff’s career took off from the start, and in 1988, he set an ASA record for the most home runs in a game, with eight.By 1997, he had accumulated 5,300 at-bats, 1,864 hits, 1,844 home runs, and a .730 batting average.Sadly, Androff passed away of natural causes in 1997, but his remarkable contributions to the game were recognized after his death by his posthumous inductions into the ISA, NSA and USSSA Hall of Fames.

10. Rusty Bumgardner

• Six-time Major World Series Championship winner
• Five-time All-World team selections
• USSSA Hall of Famer (2006)

Rusty Bumgardner was one one of the greatest softball players of the 1990s and early 2000s. He played for several teams throughout his career, including ShenValley/Taylor Brothers/TPS, Converters Limited, and Resmondo/Hauge/Taylor/Sunbelt. During the decade he was on these teams, Bumgardner won six Major World Series Championships.

In addition to his success on the professional circuit, Bumgardner also received several awards. He was named to the All-World team an impressive five times in 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999, and 2003. Just after he retired, Bumgardner was selected to the USSSA Hall of Fame.In 2023, he was also inducted into the National Softball Hall of Fame.

Honorable Mentions

• Andrew Blackshaw
• Bill Gatti
• Brett Helmer
• Doug Roberson
• Filomeno Codiñera Jr.
• Hang Garris
• Jeff Hall
• Ron Parnell
• Todd Joerling

FAQ

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• List of Softball Skills
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• Best Women's Softball Players of All Time
• Best Softball Video Games

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