Wally's versatility not quite enough in Hot Chaser defeat in their second-to-last game of the season

CONCORD -- From the view from the parking lot just across from the tennis courts, it would seem the Hot Chasers' 14-3 defeat to the OHM Boyz was rather routine in a D-league softball kinda way. Good team meets scuffling team, good team prevails, scuffling team scuffles, that kinda thing.

But the Boyz had no idea of the torrent of emotion that flowed through each Hot Chaser, like multiple mai tais down a paginator's throat on a warm tropical evening. For this was the evening that the mighty Wolcott bid no more, kinda sorta, to a softball career that has made him a legend to this day in Corning, Redding, Alameda and Concord, among other armpits of the state.

Mighty Wally hung up his cleats in a most memorable way. Taking a page out of playbooks past, Wolcott, aided by shrewd managerial manuvering from Chris Wagnon, managed to play pert near every position, although he left the pitching slab the lone province of Rick Hurd, who reeled off yet another complete game.

Wolcott circumvented the diamond, as if to say farewell to the various softball stations where he'd hung his hat. And if softball has been good to the fabled veteran, the fabled veteran has been good to it.

Not surprisingly, Wolcott handled the multi-positional night as easily as he would in completing a Chronicle digest. In fact, he said, the main drawback he faced was getting to the outfield spots, which were much farther out than he'd past imagined. "Fortunately the jog from right to the dugout wasn't so bad," Wolcott said.

Plate-wise, the man known as "Wally" was stuck in the six-hole, finding the time to rip a single in his first at-bat in the second inning with two away. He advanced to second base on a walk, but died there on inning's end, which was much the story of the night for the Hot Chasers, who mustered just seven hits for the game.

There was timely hitting, however. Luke Abbott muscled up for a triple over the left-fielder's head in the fourth inning, plating Bill Kolb. Abbott also singled in Rick Hurd and Chase Bryson in the sixth to account for the Hot Chasers runs. Hooray, Luke!

It all leaves the 'Chasers with one more game to play in their star-crossed season. And it left those in attendance to wonder if they'd see Wolcott on the field of play again. And answer is maybe -- Wolcott let it slip to confidants during the postgame parking lot domination that he would consider playing age-group and coed softball.

For the Hot Chasers, hope of playing in the postseason died long ago. But the hopes of seeing Wolcott donning the orange pants (no, he didn't wear them Thursday) live on in the hearts of all.

"I look forward to coming back as a rookie in the over-50 league in five years," said Wonderful Wally. "Maybe by then, my sore arm will feel better.

"Had a great time with the beer in the parking lot, not to mention in the dugout. Next season I may finally volunteer to be beverage MVP."