The history of the HMWL has seen some huge changes: rotating the field 180 degrees in the early 1990s; moving back the home-run lines significantly in the mid-90s; adding an automatic strike zone in the late 1990s. But none of these compare to the earthshattering adjustment smack in the middle of the 2004 season: The brand new wiffleballs.

The HMWL has always hated mid-season changes or rule adjustments, but the league had no chance in ’04. The number of red & blue balls was lessening by the second. Quick decision: a half-season tryout of the brand new ball. Whether players liked or disliked the ball, it didn’t matter. The league HAD to make the ball work. Here’s what some of the league’s finest thought about the transition:

“The new balls are very difficult to control when thrown at high velocities. They are also difficult to make move in different directions with much control. Switching balls hurt my overall performance last year,” says 2-time Error Boy Award winner Rich McMackin. That was the general consensus: throwing the ball fast resulted in walks. Lots of them. Players had to quickly adjust to, literally, a whole new ballgame.

“HMWL pitching has now become a lot more like pitching in a baseball game. You’re not going to see anybody throwing some ridiculous back door screwball that breaks four feet,” says the 2004 Error Boy Award winner Justin Hastings, who probably succeeded the most with the new equipment. “You’ve got to be able to control your pitches, you have to successfully change speeds, and you must have an effective curveball.”