Jerry Duchen’s baseball career started in 1949 at age seven when he joined a little league program. His fifty-three year softball career began two years later when he joined his first team at Humboldt Park. In 1953 he was selected to the JYC All Star Softball Team, but his big break occurred in 1957 when he was fifteen. He was selected from a school yard to join the Evanston Adult Classic League. The problem was that the games started at 9:15 and his mother wouldn’t let him stay out past curfew, so the team captainhad to pick him up and drive him home after the games. From that point on, Jerry Duchen’s career was off and running. During his career he played in over ten thousand games at all levels of softball. He credits his longevity to adapting his abilities to his age. When he was in his twenties and thirties, he relied on his speed and power and for a small man he hit his share of triples and homeruns. He played left field and hunted down many long balls. After age and surgeries began to take their toll, Jerry Duchen pitched or played the infield, but despite his age he is still able to get out and play the game that he loves , 16″ softball.
