by Hilary Barta
In response to Jim Siergey’s “Age-Old, New Age Question”:
When hearing the Cubs greatest hits
this listener’s dumped in the pits.
The discs sadly spin
a “What could have been!”
a record an earplug befits.
Age-Old, New-Age Question
by Jim Siergey
All the Cubs
ask of Pena
is simply,
“Carlos, kin ya
get more hits
than Enya?”
Jim Siergey is an illustrator and a frequent contributor to the limerick site Limerwrecks.
We Cannot Know His Legendary Head (A Villanelle)
by Eric Nusbaum
We cannot know his legendary head,
We cannot know his riddle-speak, his swing,
His heart that greets no consequence, no dread.
Oblivious (or publicly misread),
He went forth like a jester, like a king.
We cannot know his legendary head.
Ramirez never anguished, never bled.
Perfection seemed a right and simple thing.
His heart? It greets no consequence, no dread.
A paradox: collective joy and dread
Awash in pride and drunk on estrogen–
We cannot know his legendary head.
A selfish man and insecure, they said.
But maybe public shame can even sting
A heart that greets no consequence, no dread.
And maybe all the jokes had turned to lead,
The time had come to leave the center ring.
We’ll never know his legendary head,
His heart that greets no consequence, no dread.
Eric writes the terrific blog Pitchers & Poets. One of his posts from P&P appears in the 2010 edition of Best American Sports Writing.
Out, Country!
By Stuart Shea
The thirsty ears,
The surly moods,
The obvious craving for ballpark food,
When he’s off singing country,
I won’t miss him a minute—
I’ll like the game better
When Joe West’s not in it.
Baseball . . . Soon
by Stephen Jones
Sure ’nuff baseball starts
fan-world balanced on
a new season
by game beer brats
The season-to-be first
pumped by fist
then applause dismays
& maybe applause again
The moments/the pitches
the at-bats & skewed recoveries
brilliant plays or errors by inches
or a bunt called fair
Anticipate whatever
moments of baseball & history long
a long time is April-October
& a baseball song