The Greatest Show

“There are more people out there touring the nation . . . chasing the purity offered by minor league baseball than you’d think.” -  James Bailey       In his debut novel, The Greatest Show on Dirt, James Bailey does our national pastime a genuine service by bringing to life a few random members […]

Farewell

“And listen to the sound of a new beginning Oh, this is where the old is ending Listen to the sound . . . .” Building 429     We arrived at the ballpark early, my sister and I.    Very early.   Two weeks ahead of pitchers and catchers.   Few people walked the neighborhood.   […]

Men and Moneyball

“I think about baseball virtually every waking hour of my life.”                                                         -  Bill James   courtesy of google images   Good face.   Good jaw.  Five tools.  Clean stroke.  He’s cheap.  Buy wins.  Buy runs.   The what?   Rich teams.  Poor teams.   Who’s that?   That’s Pete.   […]

Ballpark Food

Today is Opening Day, and many are writing on the subject.  Opening Day is what I should be celebrating too, but I’m dwelling in the realm of spring training for a few more hours.   You might call it an afterglow. It’s funny how most of us dread the end of baseball in November.   Melancholy sets […]

Six Decades of Baseball

__________ Six decades is a long time.    That’s a lot of baseball memories. Bill Lewers issues an important caveat at the beginning of his 378-page narrative:  he’s an ordinary fan.    For much of his life, he has watched baseball from the upper deck where he often sits alone (or so it seems), collecting memories […]

View from the Lone Red Seat

World Series 2007, Game 2 The lone red seat at Fenway Park offers a terrific view of the live action.   No wonder they named a radio show after it.   Views don’t get much better than this:  that’s what my son and I were thinking one windless October night as Curt Schilling took the field in […]

Winter Haven

“To me, it’s like my family,” Elaine says. “Every spring, it’s like all my boys are coming home.   All these wonderful people touch your life, and now I might never see them again.” courtesy CITYSIGHTS post cards “Earlier this spring, Sabathia had joked that he was going to ‘take a bat’ to the clubhouse […]

In Memory of Christina

This post is dedicated to the memory of Christina Taylor Green student council president,  beloved daughter,  sister, granddaughter,  friend,  Little League teammate, and inspiration to many who never knew her. _______ Christina Taylor Green.    Born  9-11-2001.  Daughter of John Green, East Coast supervisor of amateur scouts for the Los Angeles Dodgers, and granddaughter of Dallas […]

Winter Recess

“In the bleak midwinter Frosty wind made moan; Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone.” – Christina Rossetti Doubleday Field, Cooperstown The winter meetings have come and gone. Theo Epstein (currently known in New England as Santa Claus) and the Boston Red Sox have succeeded brilliantly in signing both Adrian Gonzalez and Carl […]

Cape League Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Cape Cod Baseball League Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Chatham Bars Inn Saturday, November 20, 2010 __________________ “You spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time.” – Jim Bouton Part I. The Cape Cod Baseball League […]

Mickey Mantle: The Last Boy

“Get the f___ outta here. It’s like a cemetery to me.”     – Mickey Mantle National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum When I first saw Mickey Mantle he was standing next to a barbecue grill in the late afternoon light outside a motel room in St. Petersburg, Florida.   He struck a relaxed and happy pose, […]

Game Over

The 2010 season ended for the Red Sox this past Sunday with an 8-4 win over the New York Yankees. “For the first time since 2006, Game No. 162 of the regular season meant closure for the Red Sox. Before the game, players were signing bats for each other and packing up other keepsakes.  It […]

Reliving the Seventies: “Big Hair and Plastic Grass”

Pet rocks, mood rings, streakers, hot pants, Pacers, go-go boots, and Wham-O-Super Balls.   Don’t you miss the  good old days?   Spaceship stadiums, exploding scoreboards, ethnic nights, polyester uniforms, Yanky Panky, wide-collared jerseys, gigantic hair, fake grass, ‘staches, high-fashion hues of ketchup and mustard, and garbage thrown onto the field. Are you feeling nostalgic for […]

How Does It Feel?

“Numbers merely describe the surface of baseball . . . No incisive statistical pocketknife, wielded however skillfully, can dissect and reveal the heart of baseball to the serious souls who study the game.” David Baldwin, Snake Jazz For the past few months I’ve been studying baseball and reading its literature almost exclusively, at the expense […]