by James Finn Garner
These Series foes, by me, are just fine
Though few are the best of all time
Whether Dodger or Ray
I don’t judge their play
Just how easy their names are to rhyme.
An Un-Youth Movement
by James Finn Garner
Can anyone turn back the clock?
Should LaRussa skipper the Sox?
Beyond being Jer’s buddy
The rationale’s muddy
Some mistakes are indelible, like Hawk’s.
Go Get ‘Em Tigers
by James Finn Garner
The blue plastic transistor radio
I snuck into
Sister Geraldine’s class
That October
Poured heavenly images
Into my ears
The centerfielder moved to short
The old lion roaming in right
The brawny arms of Willie the Wonder
The soulful stare of Mickey Lolich
And the plate Freehan protected from Brock
NONE SHALL PASS!
All the saints and martyrs
Bringing a miracle to Motown
Narrated by the voice of God
In a sweet Georgia baritone
Hotsie Tatis
by James Finn Garner
In San Diego, one takes one’s ease
Climate, hot bods, and sea breeze
There’s just one commotion
Locals await with devotion:
That earthquake, Fernando TatÃs.
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.