Eddie Finnegan didn’t figure he would play slow pitch three decades much less in more than 4,500 games. If anything, Finnegan figured he would make his name on a baseball diamond throwing strikes from the pitcher’s mound and not from shortstop or third base. After all Finnegan had pitched Stratford, CT High School to the 1959 Connecticut state title. But, after a couple of major league tryouts, Finnegan realized, “I just wasn’t good enough.” He continued to play baseball as well as softball. Eventually softball became his game of choice. Finnegan had a .617 lifetime batting average and participated in 19 ASA national championships. Twice he was a member of a national championship team, 1968 and 1969 , and twice was the MVP in the Men’s Major Industrial National Tourney, 1968 and 1971. He was born September 14, 1941. The biggest thrills of Finnegan’s career were winning the 1968 national title, being named MVP and being elected to the National Softball Hall of Fame. Talking about the1968 national championship, Finnegan said, “We came out of the loser’s bracket on the final day. Those were two of the best games I’ve ever played in.”
