Phillies Sweep Brewers

by Tom Martin (@brew_haiku)

Game 90. #Phillies 3 #Brewers 2
It’s a weird feeling
Losing more games than winning
Small shades of last year…

Game 91. #Phillies 7 #Brewers 5 (in 4th inning)
Overbay Grand Slam
Seems like a long time ago
Pitching is shaky.

Game 91. #Phillies 9 #Brewers 5 (in 5th inning)
Hey Gorzelanny
Good to see you in the game
Please, no more runs though!

Game 92. #Phillies 4 #Brewers 1
Let’s see, we have lost
4 straight and 8 out of 9
Time for slide to end.

Game 93. #Phillies 9 #Brewers 1
That sinking feeling
Both game and Division leads
Evaporated.

Tom Martin writes haiku for every single Brewer game. Follow him on Twitter @brew_haiku.

Opening Day 2014

by Doug Fahrendorff

Another season
Harbingers of spring
Robins in my yard
This morning
Brewer baseball
On the radio
This afternoon
Snow predicted
By the weekend
Our equanimity
Undisturbed
Winter finally in retreat
Baseball is back

 

National League Central 2014 Spring Training Haiku

by Stuart Shea

BREWERS
Forecast for ’14?
Lots of Braun but little brain.
Enjoy fourth place, guys.

CARDINALS
Yadier Molina—
Buster Posey before the
new Buster Posey.

CUBS
Huh. “Wait til next year”
From a franchise managed by
Weekly profit/loss.

PIRATES
There’s one more Hurdle:
Convert iron not to steel
But to a trophy.

REDS
Time for a Price change—
It was getting Dusty there.
Maybe they’ll win now.

 

The Agony of the Agate

by Michael X. Ferraro

Baseball in August creates many jobs
for travel agents and typesetting slobs.
Rehab assignments, Triple A spot starts,
Pennant aspirants shopping for spare parts.

Roster gods move in mysterious ways–
David DeJesus, three teams in five days?
Colin Cowgill’s grin, Billy Buckner’s frown.
Holy Toledo, Phil Coke’s been sent down!

Some guys can’t clear waivers; others released,
Plus one salary dump in the NL East.
(The Mets helped Pittsburgh in a deal most absurd—
Just tossed them a Buck and flipped them a Byrd.)

Eduardo Sanchez, gone from the big club.
But Ma Arrieta, Jake’s now a Cub!
Brad Boxberger sighs, packs for the bushes.
John Axford heads where the playoff push is.

Contenders reload, pretenders cut bait.
Hey Tuffy Goseswisch, Reno’s your fate.
Jose Constanza the Braves did recall,
with hopes that he’ll help them deep into Fall.

Philly’s less Savery—no Joe in the bigs;
Report sir, at once, to the Iron Pigs.
Ross Wolf’s been optioned to Round Rock Express,
while the Dodgers scooped up Edinson Volquez.

One-line transactions, a queer kind of fame.
Vic Black, you’ve become “Player To Be Named.”
Xavier Avery’s now a Rainier,
maybe Seattle, he’ll see you next year?

Michael X. Ferraro is a writer/producer/lyricist who scans the fine print daily to make sure he hasn’t been outrighted to Lehigh Valley.

Ryan’s Song . . . Gone So Wrong, Now The Rest to Follow

by Stephen Jones

In this tired story fueled, it seems,
by personal and institutional greed,
will suspension clear the smoke?

HGH and PEDs, the fiery secret
formula lurking hidden in MLB . . . then
one astute comment is its equation:

“Average talent becomes good,
good talent becomes great, and
great talent reaches the Hall of Fame.”

(In the past, the tightrope dance between
denial and admission seemed to mirror baseball –
where business often outweighed the game.)

But not this time: the list of the alleged is
too long, the evidence too compelling.  MLB
will clean house, Selig will have his legacy.

To note: Braun may get his money, so may
others to be named.  But Hall of Fame status
is unreachable . . . and no asterisk need apply.