Fanfare

by Edmund Conti

Fans in New England (the Red Sox Nation)
Are masochists in anticipation.

Yankee fans are clever guys
Two strikes on batter, they all rise
Sophisticated crowd.  Who knew
All of them could count to two?

The Cubby fans are loud and jivey,
Or are they rooting for the ivy?

It’s Baseball Night in Canada, eh?
Do the Blue Jays fight or do they play?

Texas loves the Texas Rangers
To the rest of us they’re total strangers.

Mets fans shout it:
Fuhgeddaboudit!

Good players are what their diamond lacks
But their fans still cheer the Diamondbacks.

The team is shaky in Seattle
The players may but the fans don’t rattle.

Florida fans all like to laze
Watch the game, take in the Rays.

Some fans will cheer and that’s
All we have for the Washington Nats.

Philadelphia’s fandom
Cheers or boos—it’s random.

Derek Sends Us Reaching For The Bottle

by David Bellel

RIP Gil-Scott Heron

See that half black boy over there, runnin’ scared
His baseball game just goes half-throttle
He done quit getting high fives to choke full time
So now his fans are living in the bottle

See that half black boy over there, runnin’ scared
His baseball game just goes half-throttle
This ol’ man has got a problem
Can’t do hardly anything,
Minka won’t get a wedding ring but a bottle.

And don’t you think it’s a crime
When time after time, our old heroes send us reaching for the bottle
Living in a bottle

See that half brotha he was so fine before he
Stared to decline
While his fans hit the bottle
Last time he was fine was in 2009
and now he’s just markin’ time,
While his fans hit the bottle.

You’ll find David posting with the rest of Yankee stalwarts over at It Is High, It Is Far, It Is….Caught.

 

Phillies 5, Reds 4

by Ember Nickel

A pop-up to Wilson Valdez
To lead off the game, start the top.
A two-run homer in the bottom
Forgotten by the time they’d stop.

The online box preserves its shape:
Room for innings, just one through nine
(What did the real newspapers do?)
One clicks to move along the line.

One needs two clicks to see the start.
Or one to see the reviewed play.
Homer for Bruce, play stands as called–
But Ryan overshadowed Jay

Homering in the bottom half.
The Reds responded, out of kind
Loading up the bases, but
Baserunners proved harder to find

After Valdez’ eleventh-inning
Single. Twelve, thirteen, fourteen, came
And went with zeroes. Hits at last.
But on the linescore, just the same.

Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen. When
To take the risk? No guidebook says
When to bring in Wilson Valdez
Or to take out Danys Baez
Fingers crossed tight for Martinez
Grateful cheers for Raul Ibanez
In the morning, somehow it’s done
And Valdez the unlikely hero
Rises to plateau, one and zero–
While Fisher falls to oh and one.

Ember Nickel likes to play the tenor saxophone, chess, and with the English language. Her website is Lipogram! Scorecard!

Traditions

by Doug Fahrendorff

Dad’s stories of baseball
In the 60’s
Catch in the backyard
Cheering for the same team
Pickup games at the school field
Your own Louisville slugger
Breaking in a new glove
Collecting baseball cards
A visit to the Hall of Fame
Watching “Field of Dreams”
Expectations on opening day
Your team
Winning the pennant
And World Series