by James Finn Garner
The nicknames of old were top-notch
“Shoeless Joe,” “Iron Horse” — guys to watch!
But a colorful name’s
No sure lock on fame–
look how few remember “Old Swampcrotch.”
May 17
by Stephen Jones
On this day, in 1939,
The first-ever-televised
Baseball game ocurred.
It was between Princeton
And Columbia, at
Columbia’s Bakers Field,
And Princeton won, 2-1.
Casey at the Bat: Another Outcome
by Michael Ceraolo
The outlook wasn’t hopeful for the Mudville nine that day,
Trailing four to two with but one inning left to play.
We’ll cut to the chase to bring this puppy home,
Skipping several stanzas of Thayer’s celebrated poem.
We will pick it up again as the umpire calls strike one,
Little realizing as he does so, what will soon be done.
For at the call, though a good one, Casey throws up his hands,
And as though awaiting the sign, the fans rush from the stands.
Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light.
But there are consequences when the fans act like horseshit:
And there is no joy in Mudville–the riot caused a forfeit.
42
by Phillip W. Wilson
He was not
the best Negro League player
the Dodgers could have signed.
But he was the first
so he had to be better
than legendary.
Where did his calm come from
when he took the field
amidst a rain of insults
hurled like a pyroclastic flow?
How did he show the best
in men
while men showered him
with the worst?
How could he do it
one more day
let alone the next
and then the next?
Whatever it was
burned in him
with such intensity and
white hot heat that,
like Vulcan,
he forged impenetrable armor.
Baseball retired
Jackie Robinson’s 42
for all teams for all time.
The answer to life, the universe
and everything,
is it any wonder
it is the angle at which
sunlight and water
turn into rainbows?
Phillip has recently been published in Poeming Pigeon, and received an Honorable Mention in 2020 in the Oregon Poetry Association’s Contest for new poets. He lives in Beaverton, Ore., with his wife, who is also a poet.
To the Rookie of the Year, 1970….
By the St. Louis Browns Marketing Staff
You couldn’t have picked a better spot
In all the U.S.A.
Our welcome to St. Louis, son,
We send without delay.
If you can’t use these tickets
For just any game at all,
We’d be pleased to have your parents
When the umpire cries: “Play ball!”
Congratulations,
Bill Veeck
For a time, the Browns sent 2 free tickets to newborn children in St. Louis. Found on the marvelous Twitter feed of Jim Koenigsberger (@Jimfrombaseball).Â