The Baseball Season of 2020

by Millie Bovich

So what was the season like for year 2020?
Just read on and I’ll tell you plenty!

Like your mud splashed car that you just had washed,
Like a chocolate soufflé that’s been badly squashed,

Like another little hole in your old rowboat,
Like your neighbor’s new pet is a smelly goat,

Like an unfinished piece of coconut pie
That the waiter took away when you turned your eye,

Like a loan repaid but the check just bounced,
Like the Detroit Tigers when they’ve just been trounced,

Like your morning coffee that’s just tepid warm,
Like your bunch of flowers where the bees will swarm,

Like a rusty screw that you can’t get out,
Like the pain that caused by a big toe gout,

Like a close-up talker who has garlic breath,
Like a Stanley Cup game going sudden death,

Like no chips or pretzels when the kids come home,
Like no gas in the car when you want to roam,

Like rain on the roof when a picnic’s planned,
Like the last chance lost when the hitter fanned,

Like your sunny-side-ups at your favorite spot
With the yolks not runny and the toast not hot,

Like the clock that stops with one last tick,
Like the power goes out in a mystery flick,

Like lasagna when the chef forgot the cheese,
Like your big presentation and you feel a sneeze.

That’s a baseball season with just 60 games played
Just like no sugar in the lemonade!

 

Bob Dylan’s 2017 Forecast: “Ballad of a Cringe Man”

by Lou Carlozo

You walk into the booth with your microphone in your hand
The barflies see you on TV: “Oh crap, not him again!”
You smugly shrug it off but you don’t understand
Compared to Ernie Harwell, man, you suck
And the fans of baseball hate you, but you don’t know why that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

The Bleacher Bums are reeling, they’re about to lose their lunch
You’re the brat pre-adolescent everybody wants to punch
Even Harry Caray gets his undies in a bunch
From his grave I heard him moaning, “What the f*ck?”
Perhaps you’d raise a Bud to him, but you don’t know what that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

You flash your trusty press pass and you saunter to the booth
It’s time to practice color, but it’s black-and-white in truth
You may be Jack Buck’s son, but chances are he raised a goof
Perhaps you’ll get run over by a truck
The viewers want Bob Uecker, but you don’t know who that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

Here’s a Series match-up that we all would die to see:
You against the Hot Dog Man calling Game 1 on TV
The Hot Dog Man sees ironies and humor you can’t see
And should you crack a joke, we’d say “Good luck”
We’d send you to the minors, but you don’t know where that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

Somewhere there’s kid who wants to call the games like you
“Well, kid, here’s how it works, I’m gonna to tell you what to do:
Beat to death a Clayton Kershaw hero trope or two
Until his arm goes lamer than a duck.”
It’s time to turn the sound down, but you don’t care why that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

Now you ignore the Cubs fan
Shouting the word “UGH!”
The Indian fans are flustered
Crying in their mugs
And you say, “What’s the matter?”
And they scream back, “Earlplugs!
“Give us some or else we’ll yell, ‘Go home!’”
The umps would call you “out,” but you can’t see why that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

So get yourself a job, you can mow Vin Scully’s lawn
Or maybe Theo Epstein needs himself a worthless pawn
Too bad you can’t be traded for a pitcher with no arm
Call Ernie Broglio’s agent, you stupid schmuck
But Broglio is crying, though you don’t know why that is
Do you . . . Mr. Buck?

No Regrets

by James Finn Garner

Mookie Betts
Is as good as it gets
Never touches cigarettes
Adopts strays and rescues as pets
Motto: Always forgive and forget
Brings the clubhouse fresh baguettes
Fighting to save the reddish egret
Doesn’t truck with epithets
Takes the time to enjoy sunsets
You wanna be like Mookie, too, I bet!

 

Cleveland Numerology

by James Finn Garner

You can play 18 holes
(and have a good walk spoiled)

You can drive an 18-wheeler
(and get away from it all)

You can pass an 18th Amendment
(so no one can toast, at least legally)

You can watch “18 Again”
(and feel as old as George Burns)

You can rock out to “I’m 18”
(and feel as old as Alice Cooper)

You can, in fact, do any of these things,
But you can’t play ball in October.

 

Superheroes Playing Pepper

Memoir by Dan Spinella

When the yellow and red Rheingold truck was parked outside of the apartment, we knew that Dad was home and we were going to a ballgame.

We’d pile into the truck, the smell of beer permeated the cab, and drive to Brooklyn and Ebbets Field. It seemed like a ride that went on forever. From wherever we parked, we could see the Ebbets Field rotunda.

We’d run ahead of Dad, who’d buy grandstand tickets, then we’d walk into the green afternoon at the ballpark. Down below, but not too far away, were Reese and Campanella, Snider and Hodges, and most strikingly Jackie Robinson. Playing pepper.

We knew it was possible to have heroes and witness their feats of small greatness tucked away in our seats in our baseball home.