It may be easier for Brian Crumbling to list the teams in the Susquehanna Baseball League that he hasn't played for, rather than the ones he's been on during his long career.

Crumbling has worn a lot of different uniforms during his rounds of the sandlot diamonds.

"They call me the hat collector," a smiling Crumbling said. "This is my 25th year, although I didn't become a full-time pitcher until 1999."

This is Crumbling's third tour of duty with East Prospect. Before rejoining the Pistons, Crumbling was part of Hallam's title teams.

Like most veteran pitchers, Crumbling relies on guts and guile, rather than overpowering stuff, to get hitters out.

Some courage is required to deliver pitches from 60 feet, 6 inches away to batters who are 15 or 20 years younger.

Crumbling seeks to prevent hitters from teeing off on his pitches by moving the ball in and out and keeping it down in the strike zone. Having someone ground a ball through the middle is better than watching it sail over the fence.

Crumbling executed the game plan successfully, for the most part, on Sunday against regular-season champion Conrads. He yielded 11 hits, but just three runners crossed the plate in the playoff game. Conrads averaged more than seven runs a game in capturing the 2012 pennant.

Crumbling also made a terrific defensive play in the third inning when he bolted off the mound to make a shoestring catch on a bunt attempt.

"I was pleased overall," Crumbling said after the 3-0 loss to Conrads. "I left a couple (of pitches) up, and they hit them. That's what good teams do. There were some hanging curves, but I was happy with it (the performance). If you hold a team like that to three runs, you can't complain."

East Prospect is a team that's struggled in recent years, but the Pistons pushed Conrads in the playoffs. The New Bridgeville team rallied with three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and one in the eighth inning to win Saturday's game, 8-7.

"They found a way to win, and that's what good teams do," Crumbling said. "That's what we have to learn how to do."

Crumbling thinks the Pistons are a program on the rise. East Prospect, which won only five games last season, earned 12 victories this year.

"We have good young guys. We improved a lot from last year, we got in the playoffs and we gave the top team a run," he said. "The good teams have guys who have been together a while plus some good young guys they mix in with the veterans"

Does a certain veteran pitcher expect to be back at East Prospect next year?

"I'm planning on it," Crumbling said. "I would like to get 100 wins. We don't know exactly how many I have, but I know I have 90-some wins."

Dick VanOlinda is a sportswriter for the York Dispatch. He can be reached at dvanolin da@yorkdispatch.com or 505-5407.