When Detroit men’s slow pitch teams were the toast of the softball world, 6-feet-4 inch, 260-pound plus Carl (Tex) Collins was one of the players supplying the offense. Collins, who died in 1980, played in nine ASA national championships and earned All-America honors four times. The first was in 1967 when he batted .630, hit 13 homers (including six in a row) and drove in 27 runs. The second All-America selection came in 1969 as Collins led Little Caesars to third place in the national tourney, batting .654 (17-for-26) with four homers and 11 RBIs. Little Caesars won the national title in 1970, defeating defending champion Copper Hearth of Milwaukee, WI with Collins batting .625 and hitting five homers, including four in the championship game.But he wasn’t named an All-American. In 1972, Collins was named All-American for a third time. Caesars finished seventh in 1972 as Collins batted .582 with five homers and 15 RBIs. His fourth and final All-America selection came in 1973, batting .541, hitting 11 homers and driving in 19 runs to lead Little Caesars to a third-place finish. Born in Miami (pronounced Miam-ah in Oklahoma), OK in 1934, Collins died of a heart attack in 1980.
