The Grumman Yankees, softball’s version of the New York Yankees, narrowly missed winning the ASA national title in 1951. Grumman finished third in the 17 team field and its star pitcher, Roy Stephenson, proved he was as good as anyone in the United States by hurling 66 innings in six games, 52 in the final 29 hours. Stephenson’s 4-2 record earned him his second of five All-America awards during his career of more than two decades. He also was an All-American in 1948, 1950, 1958 and 1959. In 1958, he won 42 of 48 games, striking out 576 batters and winning three of five games in the national tourney. In 1959, he was 48-8 with 784 strikeouts before going 3-2 in the national tourney. In national championship play, Stephenson was 23-18, 15-2 in state tourneys and 40-3 in regionals. A 6-foot-1, 190-pounder, Stephenson started playing softball in 1938 with the Shamrocks of New Rochelle. Then 14, he worked very hard in developing himself into a world-class pitcher. “I used to practice for hours. I would throw against a fence when there was nobody to catch me. It certainly built up my arm. There was a time when my right arm was one-third larger than my left arm.” Stephenson retired from active play in 1960 and called his greatest thrills striking out 28 batters in a row in a 15 inning game in West Haven, CT and being elected to the ASA National Softball Hall of Fame.
