Crook, Bill

He started in softball as a player in 1957 at the age of sixteen and has played or coached for forty-four seasons. As a player, he played competitively for six decades. During the sixties and early seventies, he played for Bondurant Drugs and Pepsi-Cola of Corbin, KY. In the mid-seventies and early eighties, he played for and managed the Forest Products teams of Corbin.

During the time he managed and played for Forest Products, he was named MVP of the 1974 Fourth of July Classic held in Corbin. Forest Products won that prestigious tournament which included nationally-ranked Hamilton Bank of Knoxville, Tennessee, and the 1974 State Champion. Pepsi-Cola. Crook was named to four all-tournament teams that year and nine all-tournament teams in his career as a player.

At the age of 51, he played for Pepsi- Cola when they finished second in 1993 ASA 45 & Over Nationals at Enid, Oklahoma, and was named All-American.

He has coached and managed teams to State Tournament play on nineteen occasions including the last eleven years in a row. For the last eight years, he has managed the Southeast Mavericks. In his teams’ 19 State Tournaments appearances, they have finished second once, third three times, and fourth once. His teams have participated in nine National Tournaments with his 2000 squad achieving a 13th place finish among 84 participants.

This award bears witness that his name shall forever be in the Kentucky Softball Hall of Fame.