How did SASL come to be about? It all started with pickup games in fields in Bethpage, and Syosset with 2 teams that had no permits. Soon the “core 4” teams were created: Dynasty, HitMen, Shock, Outlaws with Ammad Sheikh as the first Commissioner and founder of the South Asian Softball League (SASL). The SASL as we officially know it was born. Ammad formalized the league with Ali Najimi as we applied for permits after getting kicked out from various parks including having the police called on us a few times. The original games were played in Plainview until permits for Cantiague Park arrived.
The league looked very different initially – each team had their own designated pitcher. There were no uniforms, no roster limits, no minimum at-bats, and no umpires!
From the original 4 teams, there have been countless teams, captains, and players filtering thru the league over the years. After the debut year, Haseeb Ahmed reached out and brought 2 teams – 1 of which was Deenz List and the other one was the Flying Mosquitos.
From 2005 until 2011, the league was one division with one champion. Then in 2012, the league went into a morning (AM Division) and afternoon (PM Division). That distinction was short-lived and the league went to two separate divisions the very next year. The “Legends Division” and “Champions Division” were separated based on talent. Legends division was for the more experienced players.
4 years into the split divisions, it was necessary to combine them again in 2017 to reset the league. However, the league decided to introduce the “Cap System” in order to create parity. This was a huge change as teams needed to abide by a points system that limited “super teams”. That was also the year Ammad handed the reins over to new Commissioner Anwar Sadat.
2018, the League continued the cap system but with two divisions with “American League” having a higher cap and “National League” a lower cap. This continued for 2 years until 2020. For the 2020 season, the League is playing under one division again. Over the years, there have been many Championships, and the SASL experts rank the top 5 teams as: Softballers, S.W.A.T/Hit Squad, Spartans/Savages, Outlaws, and Force. Dynasty is the only remaining team from the original teams.
SASL BY THE YEAR:
2019:
- AL Division: Savages defeat HeavyHittaz — Charley Robinson Finals MVP
- NL Division: Hit Squad defeat Scoobies Force — Ankit Ramchandani Finals MVP
- AL Division: Charley Robinson League MVP
- NL Division: Mike Velez League MVP
- Fall Ball: The North defeat Dynasty — Nicolas Timpone Finals MVP
2018:
- AL Division: Mighty Ducks defeat Savages — Bobby Bonett Finals MVP
- NL Division: Hit Squad defeat The Ones — Wahid Omarzai Finals MVP
- AL Division: Ramy Abdelhamid League MVP
- NL Division: Frank Perez League MVP
- Fall Ball: Nature Boys defeat Dynasty — Sanjay Sharma Finals MVP
2017:
- Regular Season: Savages defeat Empire – Yasar Bokhari Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Kunal Sra League MVP
- Fall Ball: Suicide Squad defeat Dynasty — Dan DiIorio Finals MVP
2016:
- Legends Division: Heavy Hitters defeat Spartans – John Sans Finals MVP
- Champions Division: Hit Squad defeat Dynasty – Wahid Omarzai Finals MVP
- Regular Season: John DeMartino League MVP
- Fall Ball: Hit Squad wins — Jason Reis Finals MVP
2015:
- Legends Division: Spartans defeat Empire — Pragnesh Patel Finals MVP
- Champions Division: Force defeat Scooby Scorers — Reggie Roy Finals MVP
- Legends Division: Hashim Naveed League MVP
- Champions Division: Kevin Persaud/Deric Spindell League Co-MVPs
- Fall Ball: Savages win — Masoom Siddiqui Finals MVP
2014:
- Legends Division: Spartans defeat Desert Eagles – Pawan Motwani Finals MVP
- Champions Division: Force defeat Scooby Scorers — James Lin Finals MVP
- Legends Division: Hashim Naveed League MVP
- Champions Division: Ramesh Ballie League MVP
2013:
- Legends Division: SWAT defeat Outlaws — Hakim Najimi Finals MVP
- Champions Division: Tigers defeat the Ones — Nick Finals MVP
- Legends Division: Masoom Siddiqui League MVP
- Champions Division: Adeel Ahmed Finals MVP
2012:
- Regular Season: Softballers defeat Wolfpack – Joe Ambrosio MVP
- AM Division: Ahmed Mohammed League MVP
- PM Division: Hashim Naveed League MVP
- Fall Ball: S.W.A.T wins — Bret Suffis Finals MVP
2011:
- Regular Season: Softballers defeat Empire – Haseeb Ahmed Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Ahmed Mohammed League MVP
- Fall Ball: Fall Dogs win — Harpreet Chadha Finals MVP
2010:
- Regular Season: Softballers defeat X-Men- Ahmad Ghumman Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Pragnesh Patel League MVP
2009:
- Regular Season: S.W.A.T defeat X-Men – Kunal Sra Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Pragnesh Patel League MVP
2008:
- Regular Season: Softballers defeat S.W.A.T – Ali Arshad Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Ramin Rasuli League MVP
2007:
- Regular Season: Outlaws defeat Damage Inc. – Gregory Murello Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Hakim Najimi League MVP
2006:
- Regular Season: Softballers defeat Shock – Usman Ghumman Finals MVP
- Regular Season: Amit Bhasin League MVP
2005:
- Summer Division: Outlaws defeat Shock in 3 games– Ramin Rasuli Finals MVP
- Spring Division: Dynasty defeat HitMen in 3 games– Amit Bhasin Finals MVP
