Pat Hicks

#24 - C, 2B (profile)

Pat joined Team inDRStructible during the 1997 season. However, despite the DRS captain’s meticulous team records and usual razor-sharp memory as it pertains to all matters of team history and trivia, it cannot be recalled how Pat first came to play with the taxmen. The team had only been formed a year earlier in 1996, and the squad was predominantly an all-Operations Division team at that. Yet somehow, Pat, who works in the commissioner’s office, caught wind of the team's existence and soon started playing.

But the DRS skipper’s faulty power of recollection aside, the taxmen were happy to have Pat on the roster. Pat made her debut in a May 21, 1997 game against Acid Reign, which coincidentally, also marked the first game played by Beth (Geiger) Souza with the club.

Pat spent her playing time split evenly between catching behind the plate and out at second base. There were also cameo appearances in right field, and a one-time stint at first base.

In the batter's box, Pat was a solid line-drive hitter and nearly always pulled the ball. And though many of her shots ended up getting snagged by opposing third basemen or shortstops, she still managed to hit .302 (45 hits in 149 at bats) over five seasons of play. (In fact, when comparing female players with as many at bats, only Peggy Jiantonio and Carol Bagley rank with a higher lifetime batting average.)

Pat’s best game came on August 4, 1998 against the Department of Corrections. She already had three base hits as the game entered the bottom of the final inning, with DRS trailing by four runs. The taxmen started mounting a rally, when Pat came to bat with runners on base. Upon seeing her approach the plate, one of the opposing players warned the pitcher, “be careful, she’s been kicking our ass all night.” Darren LaForge encouraged Pat from the bench, yelling, “well kick it just a little more.” Pat then promptly lined a base hit over the third baseman’s head to keep the inning alive, as DRS went on to score five runs and win the game in walk-off fashion.

Pat hasn’t played in a game since 2002, but still keeps very close tabs on the team’s progress, and tries to come out to take in at least one game a year. She also remains a major contributor of time and effort in the team’s annual campaign to raise donations for the Greater Hartford Easter Seals Softball Weekend.