1. Welcome to the Hot Seat Charley Robinson. Tell us a little about yourself off the field. What do you do for a living? What are your hobbies? Etc.
Thanks for having me. And to be honest, I’ve already answered every question below… saved this one for last.
I own and operate a strategy and brand experience design company—Iconoclast Design Co. To simplify—I build identities, products, and experiences for companies. I love what I do. Owning your own business is the ultimate freedom. My biggest hobby is trying to find balance—work, being a husband, dad, friend, musician, softball player, etc.
2. Who are your role models growing up and now? Why? What makes a good role model?
Ken Griffey Jr. — the perfect role model. Changed the game. Invented the backwards hat. Loved what he did. Never lost his cool. Never got tossed. Extremely confident, not arrogant. Let his game do the talking. Translate that all to life… it applies.
3. You have a young daughter, how has being a father changed your perspective in life? Does it feel overwhelming at times?
It changes everything. Best way to describe it—until you have kids, you feel almost immortal. Once you have a kid, mortality becomes reality. Now there’s a little person in this world depending on you. It’s the greatest thing.
4. During your college years, you pitched for your college team. Talk to us about those years. What was in your pitching arsenal? Did you ever consider going semi-pro? Did you enjoy pitching more than any other position and why?
Unfortunately my baseball career was over by the time I was turning 18. Baseball was my life. I traveled all over the country playing. But ignorance and arrogance got the best of me. I was a pitcher, naturally threw hard with movement, developed a nasty 12 to 6 curve but just as things were taking off I tore my rotator cuff and bicep. I pitched too much (ignorance) and didn’t train (arrogance). ‘Back in my day’ they didn’t monitor pitch counts like they do now. So, I took a scholarship to a smaller school to potentially get surgery, rehab, and see what would happen… but at the end of the day, there were no guarantees I would return to form, so I transferred out and put all my energy into school. Everything happens for a reason.
5. You started playing SASL quite a while ago around 2009/2010 I think. How did you hear about SASL and what were the early years like?
I moved to New York from Pennsylvania back in late 2008. My girlfriend at the time (wife now) had a cousin who ran a team out here. So I jumped on that team and met Phil and Hash. Hash was like 17 at the time. He dressed in full Mets uniform and didn’t talk. The guys told me he was Dominican and didn’t speak English… Long story short, those two brought me in. I ’sat in’ with the Pros for a season or so. It was fun. The league’s come a long way since then. Not as many ground ball HRs as there used to be. And Hash can hit it over the fence now.
6. Your resume in SASL may be the most accomplished ever or at least in the top 3. Give us 2-3 regrets you have in SASL after all these years.
No regrets. Personally, I wish I could’ve stayed in physical shape. But there’s still time to return to form. There were a few championships we lost that we had no business losing. But that’s why you play the games.
7. In your time in SASL, you have won 5 championships. Break them down for us:
-2020 THE NORTH (def. Dynasty in Fall Ball):
That was a fun, short little season. Was fun to play against Pavy and Hash for a change.
-2019 Savages (def. HeavyHittaz):
Hands down our best roster. Also, hands down our best opponent. Absolutely the best championship series we’ve had in SASL. Very exciting. Big hits, big plays on both sides. But the season was stressful. The more you win, the more pressure to keep it going. It’s rec softball… but keeping a team on top, in this league in particular, can be stressful.
-2017 Savages (def. Empire):
This was a great year. First year as Savages. New lifelong friendships being made. Good jerseys. And Empire ‘gave’ Yasar Finals MVP as an out for their quiet bats.
-2015 Spartans (def Empire):
The ‘green years’. I was so focused on work and other things during the Spartans’ run. I just showed up, stood at 1B and swung hard. And we won a few.
-2014 Spartans (def. Desert Eagles):
I really don’t remember this one at all. I remember merging with Pragnesh and the boys, but that’s about it. I do remember the heartbreaking losses on The Pros and the first year of The Spartans.
8. You have made 10 All Star games in your career. What is the secret to being so consistent year after year? What hitting tips have helped you grow as a Softball hitter after all these years?
Well, when I was young, I just showed up, swung hard, and did what I could to make plays and help my team win. As I’ve gotten older and heavier, I’ve learned to play a little smarter. We take a decent amount of BP. Now that I’m older and glued to a desk all day, I need reps to stay lose.
Best hitting advice I can give is—work on your approach. I think for a lot of guys, if you work on your pitch selection, you can add ±.150 to your batting average. And remember—they’re throwing it underhand. Relax and only swing at the good ones.
9. You were the captain of Team USA in 2018 and 2019 in the World Cup. How was that experience? And both years you guys made it to the Finals.
The World Cup is great. It’s a fun time. The biggest challenge is making sure all the guys get solid playing time while also trying to win. Excited for the next one.
10. After a great 3 year run as Savages, a lot of you guys split up into 3 teams due to cap. What is the story behind getting THE NORTH off the ground and winning the championship this Fall season?
After the summer season, a bunch of our core guys were thinking about hanging it up. Sunday’s are tough. I guess I was leading the charge there. The fall season just kind of happened spontaneously last minute. My other Sunday fall team folded, so we pulled some dudes together and created THE NORTH. As for the summer, again—I retired. But another one of my summer teams folded, so here we are again.
11. At 15-5, you guys are among the favorites to win the championship this year. With all the parity in the League this year, which teams do you feel are your biggest competition?
The boring answer is—THE NORTH is our biggest competition. But there are a handful of great teams this year. And we know teams are coming for us. It really feels like the championship is totally up for grabs. Excited for playoffs.
12. How would you rate your season thus far and where can you make the improvements? Could you also address the rating controversy of Steve Galante?
I don’t think we’ve played up to our potential yet. It’s rec softball… guys go on vacation and have lives. So we’ve yet to have our top 10 for a week and put it all together. We’ll continue to work on our mental game. Making the right play but also doing whatever it takes to win — ‘just don’t get out’.
My good friend Steve Galante… great guy… a steal at a 4… but we’ll take it. Good example of how the rating system can fail. Long story short—Steve played for Saad last year. Steve had bad stats. Stats of something like a 2 or 3-rated player. Committee(s) rate based on stats. Saad appealed Steve from a 6 to a 4. Saad won. Saad decided to sit out because of COVID, so I brought my friend Steve back to THE NORTH where he belonged. Steve is a 10. The committee(s) failed. Next question…
13. Playing all these years in SASL, what team/year stands out the most and why? What made that team special? Conversely what was the most trying year and why?
Savages for sure. Made a lot of lifelong friends there. Also started to convert to a softball player around that time. Pavy opened my eyes to how to be a better softball player, not just an ex-baseball player trying to smash the ball. And Dex fat shamed me into an MVP MVP season. But we’re all legit friends. Our team chats are live 24/7/365. It was never a team of ringers. And like I said before, last year’s finals (2019) was the most memorable and competitive by far. Big hits, big plays. And Yasar’s defense carried him to another championship.
14. What makes SASL different that any other league you played in or play for? Do you actively go and meet players from other teams?
The community, hands down. I have a unique point of view because I moved here in my 20’s and didn’t really know anyone. So I’ve met a lot of lifelong friends through the league. I think it’s more fun too when you know the guys you’re playing against. And of course, everyone loves to see their stats… at least when you have a good game. And look at me—sitting here answering these questions for about an hour.
15. The ‘cap system’ is a very controversial topic every year in SASL. Is the cap system effective in creating parity in a league? What are your thoughts on having a cap forcing some teams to cut players.
It appears to be the necessary evil if you want to try to control parity to some degree. It’s the ’SOUTH ASIAN’ Softball League, so—at the end of the day there’s a limited number of South Asians who play softball. A ‘regular’ league will have such a larger talent pool that they can create 3-5 divisions and control parity that way. Long story short, the cap system seems to be working. I, like most others, HATE cutting players. Hopefully at some point, things even out and guys can start to bring back teams and not have to cut anyone.
16. You have been in the SASL for a long time. Who is in your SASL Mt. Rushmore?
- Yasar (Co-Ace P)
- Anwar (Co-Ace P)
- Pavy (C)
- Phil (1B)
- Pragnesh (2B)
- Hash (SS)
- Dan (3B)
- TK (OF)
- Nick (OF)
- Steve (OF)
- Ahmed Mo (OF)
- Dex (EH)
- Denen (EH)
17. What would be one change you would make if you could in the SASL and why? You have been part of SASL. Committee for a couple of years. What was that like?
I’d love to bring the 2019 Savages back. We had some good games last year and a great finals. So maybe create an upper division? To accommodate that, the change needed would be to open the rosters up a bit—allow 50% ‘guests’ so teams can bring in new, experienced talent to compete. Also—ratings… never going to be perfect. I could go on and on about how misleading the stats are. Too many variables at play—fields, attendance, injury, etc. Maybe have higher level veteran players who can evaluate talent visually and by experience, not by just blindly looking at stats. Maybe call it ’Operation Steve’?
18. How have you kept busy during the quarantine? What did you miss most not being able to do?
Family, work, and softball. That’s it. Thankfully, work has been booming. Softball hit just in the nick of time. Was starting to get a little stir crazy. I do need to get my ass in the gym though.
19. Three words or less: Describe these players:
- Irfan Musliwala: Swag Jesus
- Hashim Naveed: Jose Reyes
- Pavy Badwal: Pavy Bats
- Yasar Bokhari: FINALS MVP a.k.a. TAXGOD a.k.a. THE GOAT
- Nicolas Timpone: Sweetness
- Saeed Anwar: Influencer (Follow @saeed.a_27)
- Zulfikar Musliwala: Swag God
- Papu Allen: SPINAL
- Steve Galante: 4
- Jojo Rodriguez: Needs to move to L.I. and would look good in purple
- VJ Samaroo: The Artist®
- Manju Shanmugam: Deserves a Netflix special
20. Rapid Fire Round:
- Best SASL memory: Winning championships
- Worst SASL memory: Losing championships
- Best SASL content: The radio show… bring it back!
- Funnest team you been on: Savages
- Funniest SASL teammate: Tough one, different flavors—Manju, Irf, VJ, Yasar, Pops
- Favorite teammate ever: Besides Yasar?
- Worst SASL jerseys ever: Default answer—McDonalds Spartans
- Most overrated player: Yasar, but bless his heart
- Most underrated player: Steve?
- Best ASA bat ever: Monsta Fallout 25 oz (Pinky) / Freak Primo is nice too
- Favorite Nassau softball field: Any with an OF fence
- 3 words to describe you: 35/m/ny
- Most swagy player: Hash looks great in all white
- Your favorite vacation you been to: SoCal
- Next vacation destination: Not SoCal
- Favorite TV Show: Stranger Things & Silicon Valley
- Best beard in SASL: The Musliwalas grow excellent beards… very jealous
