by Stephen Jones
You know where your team will be, come postseason,
Whether it’s one step above, or in the division cellar:
Your play-by-play guy and your color commentator
Are already talking about next year’s starting rotation.
An Ode To Harry
by Rick Kaempfer
The poem by Franklin P. Adams definitely enhanced
The Hall of Fame chances of Tinker, Evers & Chance,
But the other name in that infield has been lost to time
Just because Harry Steinfeldt’s name didn’t rhyme.
He hit for more power, he drove in more runs,
He made fewer errors, and when the game was to be won,
They leaned on Harry Steinfeldt, the World Series MVP,
Though his name was a mouthful, depriving immortality.
Reprinted from Rick’s book, EveryCubEver (2nd edition, Eckhartz Press).
Braves 5, Yankees … Zip
by Stephen Jones
Yes, the Braves right now
Are the best team in baseball,
And yes, the Yankees are riding
An historic implosion this season,
And yes [painfully, so painfully
If you’re a Yankee fan],
The three “games” were ugly.
But despite the doom and gloom,
There was a silver lining —
Michael Kay calling the game,
And David Cone and Paul O’Neil
Adding insightful, humorous
Commentary. The trio made this
Downward Yankees’ slide palatable.
TV Chatter
by Fred Lovato
Morning shows (Japan)
gush over Shohei’s greatness
ignore Angels’ woes
For Jim Price (1941-2023)
by Stuart Shea
Curve—yellow hammer—breaks down hard
Can the pitcher keep it in the yard?
Was it tougher to catch a pitch
From Mickey Lolich
Or to scaffold Ernie Harwell’s last act?
Now a voice of memory is stilled,
But promises were fulfilled.
He won a ring. He did his thing.
Known from Marquette to Flint,
His life’s work a flash, a glint,
A wind wafting through dozens of summers.
Stu Shea, the co-founder of Bardball, is the author of numerous books, including Calling the Game: Baseball Broadcasting from 1920 to the Present.
