Southpaws on Parade
by Todd Herges
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Quick trips up are saved,
or so it is said,
for lefties who hit with good pow’r;
the finest of gems
scouts try hard to mine
are sinister live-armed hurlers.
Oh-nine is the year
these truths can be seen
on both of the teams still alive.
For while Pujols is great
and Vlad’s bat can’t wait
they stand in the box close to third;
while Lincecum’s crazed
and Beckett is made
They’re now taking showers at home.
The teams that are left
are those who chose best,
hitched wagons to maladroit men.
Howard, Hideki,
Damon and Utley,
on demand can take the ball yard;
Cliff Lee and C.C.,
Cole Hamels, Andy,
quite clearly show that they’ve got game.
So now we are left
to watch quite impressed
A southpaw-filled Classic on Fox.
(The lefthanders playing in the World Series this year are: pitchers Phil Coke, Damaso Marte, Andy Pettitte, CC Sabbathia, Antonio Bastardo, Scott Eyre, Cole Hamels, A.J. Happ, and Cliff Lee; hitters Robinson Cano, Johnny Damon, Brett Gardner, Eric Hinske, Hideki Matsui, Paul Bako, Greg Dobbs; Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Raul Ibanez, Matt Stairs; plus switch hitters Melky Cabrera, Nick Swisher, Mark Teixeira, Jorge Posada, Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino. Twenty-six men. Over half of the two combined rosters. Juuust a bit outside the “normal” distribution of lefties among the general public.)
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Posted 11/2/2009
Cheering for the Laundry
by James Finn Garner
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Stars and journeymen come and go,
But the colors stay the same
(Unless a retool’s passed by MLB,
The Heidi Klums of the game).
We cheer for laundry throughout the year,
And as the leaves turn red and gold,
The winning jerseys pull up front,
Eight teams leave the fold.
Champagne pops and high fives slap
As they reach the next plateau
And don those “Division Champ” caps and shirts
And pocket the marketing dough.
Players cheer for the laundry, too,
And a little more fold on the side.
Hey, 20 grand is 20 grand.
It buys a lot of Tide.
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Posted 10/23/2009
10/4/87
By Stuart Shea
There was a big game going on in Detroit
To decide the Eastern division champ
But my brother and I were at Comiskey
Where despite the October sunshine
The atmosphere was damp.
I was 24 but even then had an overarching sense
of melancholy.
The last game of a mediocre season?
Perfect fit for me.
The Sox beat the Athletics 5-2.
No big deal; neither team
Was going anywhere but home.
One reason we went is that we knew it would be Reggie Jackson’s last game ever.
So we alternately cheered and booed him.
He got two hits.
When the game ended
Ozzie Guillen threw his glove high in the air
And I hoped that it would never come down.
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Posted 10/21/2009
