His name implies a connection to glam rock. But he had heard that before wiffles. Craig “Dee” Deelsnyder is our current Commish. He took the reigns from Truck before last year. The Commish job is often a thankless job. A no-pay, no-glory, volunteer gig that depletes a man. Dee stepped up. However, he has been stepping up for the league long before taking on the new role. He created an easy to use stat entry interface. He maintained the website at a cost to himself until he finally decided to ask for a few bucks here and there. He was doing much behind the scenes to keep this league on the cutting edge of kickassitude.
Since becoming Commish, he has taken the reigns and run with them. A whole lot of behind the scenes work taking place. I would not be surprised if we are someday playing under bigger lights. Dee has also long held down the HRL expeditions fort. Whether it is bowling or an HRL roadie, he is in on just about every HRL themed social event and helps serve as the glue for the league.
On the field his career can best be defined by one word. OUCH! He has had a couple of gruesome injuries but has managed to get back out there after each. Early word is that this year he will be free and clear of any impediments. We here at the Side of Cheese are looking forward to seeing a full year out of him.
In his non HRL time, Dee is a married guy who works as a Computer Contractor. He was born in Rhode Island but spent most of his time growing up in Fulton Illinois. He was more of a football guy as a child but he does have some fond memories of hitting dongs with the plastic as a wee one. He has lived in the Twin Cities since 1999 and St Paul for the last 8 years. He came into the league via Bortke, gaining a spot on the ill-fated Senators team of 2005. Oh and one of his uncles was a high school classmate of his.
Here it is - the latest Side of Cheese:
SOC: What is your fondest HRL moment?
Dee: My fondest memory was 2005, all of it, as short as it was for me. In a span of less than 2 months I had started in the league, met a ton of fellas, road-tripped to Michigan for the WiffleHouse tournament, participated in the first W4W and also made the first trip to WiffleSlam in Iowa. It was like a crash course in wiffles and the HRL way of life. Truck and I became good friends rather quickly.
SOC: If you could do any job in the world what would it be?
Dee: I want to say something sports related, I'm a year-round sports junkie. Minnesota Twins, need a custom website? Or an elementary school teacher, always wanted to work with kids. But in all honesty I'd like to just work 9-5 and leave work at work. Something I struggle with in my current role.
SOC: Toughest pitcher in the league?
Dee: For me right now it's Doc. For a hitter of my *cough* caliber against him it's a guessing game and just swing where you think the ball is going. Even though he only throws one pitch you know it's coming in fast and he hits the board a lot, but he also moves it just enough to keep you off kilter. Lefties are always tough since we don't have that many of them.
SOC: Top 3 bands of all time?
Dee:
Sponge
Big Wreck
Pearl Jam
SOC: Desert island - you get to pick 3 foods to have unlimited amounts of - what are they?
Dee:
BBQ ribs
Buffalo chicken pizza
Garlic mashed POTATOES!
SOC: Fave 3 Restaurants?
Dee:
112 Eatery
Red's Savoy
Chicago Pizza & Oven Grinder Co. (in Chicago)
SOC: Hamburger or Hot Dog?
Dee: Hot Dog. Not a huge red meat guy.
SOC: Favorite Dave?
Dee: Dave Chappelle
SOC: What time do you go to bed on Wednesdays?
Dee: Later than I'd hope. I'm usually up until midnight or 1 AM every night.
SOC: Another hobby besides wiffleball?
Dee: Music. Had a ton of CDs before online music took over. Used to go to concerts a lot but my musical tastes fall into the 93X crowd, so now I get annoyed with the kids at concerts today.
SOC: 3 favorite beverages?
Dee:
Young's Double Chocolate Stout
G&T
Diet Pepsi
SOC: Favorite condiment?
Dee: Heinz 57
SOC: If you could play for a different HRL team what would it be?
Dee: Colt .45s
SOC: Eagan or Hopkins?
Dee: As Commish I cannot choose sides. But I can tell you league studies have shown that Eagan is better.
SOC: Top 3 TV shows of all time?
Dee:
The Dukes of Hazzard
V (the original)
Beavis and Butt-Head
SOC: Top 3 movies of all time?
Dee:
Cable Guy
Comedians of Comedy
Memento
SOC: Fave show to watch right now?
Dee: Dexter
SOC: Ghostbusters or Beverly Hills Cop?
Dee: Beverly Hills Cop. Axel F, bitches!
SOC: Tylenol or Advil?
Dee: Percocet is the most recent drug of choice. So that'd be Tylenol. Laced with crack.
SOC: Rank the Big 4 pro sports?
Dee:
NFL
NBA
MLB
NHL
SOC: Do you like soccer?
Dee: Every 4 years. I dig the World Cup when it's happening. But the diving gets to me, obviously other sports have it happen as well but soccer is pretty ridiculous.
SOC: 3 things that bother you
Dee:
Micro management
Selfishness
Immaturity
SOC: Have you ever listened to Widespread w/ Shirls? If so - where and when, If not - why not?
Dee: I assume it's been on the Padillies' boombox during one of our games. Not that I'd know them from other jam bands. We don't see each other very often, playing in different cities, otherwise I'm sure we'd have officially listened to them together at some point.
SOC: Favorite baseball player of all time?
Dee: Rickey Henderson. I was a speed demon when I was a little kid, thinking I could steal 130 in a season. Still have his rookie card.
SOC: Gas or Charcoal Grill?
Dee: Gas.
SOC: You can pick 4 people living or dead and put them in the same room with contents and size of your choosing where you can observe them interacting for as long as you like without them knowing you are doing so - who do you put in there and what do you give them?
Dee:
Zach Galifianakis
Brian Posehn
Patton Oswalt
Maria Bamford
They bring in what they have with they need to survive a week at the Big Brother house. I loved Comedians of Comedy and just want more.
SOC: Last time you ate a peanut butter & jelly sandwich?
Dee: Last weekend.
SOC: If you could be King of _______? What would you choose?
Dee: King of Zamunda
SOC: Word associations:
Dee:
Boneless: Wings
Riser: CJ
Damp: Moist
Dashing: thru the snow
Scented: litter
SOC: Dill or sweet pickles?
Dee: Both
SOC: Do you enjoy a circus?
Dee: Hell yeah!
SOC: What scares you?
Dee: Flying.
SOC: What is your bowling score?
Dee:I pry average around 140-150 when we bowl in the winter. If I practiced constantly I could get it higher as I usually get a couple 200s a year. As I can throw some stinkers.
SOC: Favorite animal?
Dee: Cheetah
SOC: Fish, hunt or neither?
Dee: Neither.
SOC: If you can fix one thing in the world what is it going to be?
Dee: Our political system. Pathetic. I'll leave it at that. (Note that's not an endorsement for the Tea Party either.)
SOC: Favorite bad guy of all time?
Dee: Ivan Drago and Michael Myers in a tie. Only a Celebrity Death Match could DEEtermine who's baddassier.
That is it for our opening week edition of SOC. I particularly liked his answer to best ballplayer of all time.