Considered by many to be the second best pitcher next to the legendary Lewa Yacilla, Bob Werderitch entered the Windy City league at 17, the youngest player at that time to play major league softball. Batting clean-up for the Immel and Karis team, he led them to a second place finish his first year. He progressed from there to pitch for such legendary teams as Winkler Motors, Petrones, Lill Coals, Eugene Dietzen, and the CYO, winning Windy City and Herald-American championships in 1938, 39, and 1940 with Petrones. Sporting a .420 batting average, he also won M.V.P. honors in 1938, ’39, and ’40 in the Herald – American Tournament and in 1939 and ’40 in the Windy City League. Werderitch later pitched Angels of Broadway to the Windy City championship in 1948. Two important memories for Werderitch include a 1-0 loss in 17 innings and pitching a game with the largest crowd ever to watch 16-inch softball at Hilburn Stadium. After retiring from softball in the early 1950s, he umpired for park and factory teams to keep in touch with the game. Bob Werderitch retired from Hammond Organ in 1982 after 28 years.
