THOUSAND OAKS : Seniors Are a Hit on the Diamond

Charlie Bestwick added one more gold-plated trophy to his already extensive collection Saturday.

The 80-year-old slugger took first place in the 70-and-over division Saturday at the Senior Home Run Derby at Goebel Senior Center in Thousand Oaks.

“I have six of them already,” said Bestwick, a retired Los Angeles police officer who lives in Thousand Oaks. “But there are only one or two others in my division,” he chuckled.

Bestwick, a “fill-in first baseman,” plays softball at the center every Tuesday and Friday. His team, the Slammers, plays in a 65-and-over league and is now tied for first place.

The Senior Home Run Derby is part of the Goebel Senior Center’s annual Fourth of July celebration, Bestwick said. Derby participants later played a softball game against a team fielded by the Conejo Recreation and Park District, which the seniors won, 11-10.

“It was a close game,” said Billy Swartz, 58, who plays on three Thousand Oaks teams when he’s not working as a physical education instructor at Fulton Junior High School in Van Nuys. Swartz got three hits, caught the final out of the game and “did all right for a gimp” in the home run derby. His team, the Thousand Oaks Panthers, are undefeated in the 55- to 60-year-old division.

“It’s fun. I love the game,” he said. “It’s good to stay active at my age.”