600 -- A Poem about Baseball Review

600

by  Christopher J. Jarmick 

 Briefly in mid 1990s
I re-caught baseball fever
And thought Ken Griffey Junior,
Could be someone's Mickey Mantle,
the flawed hero, I once admired.

New to Seattle,  time to root for hometown team
Like I was once again  7
and especially 8, going to all those games
with Pop-Pop at the 'House that Ruth Built.'
as in Yankees,  New York Yankees.. . . getoverit.

So it's root root root for the home team --Seattle
back when the Mariners seemed to be magic
A-Rod, Buhner, Edgar, Big Unit and Junior.
The Kingdome was a funky, funky place,
full of loud loud crowd cheers,  the wave and fireworks
and the Mariners were hot
and Ken Griffey was hitting lots of homeruns.

600 for the Kid today!
June 9th, 2008!
Now playing for Cincinnati
Only the 6th baseball player to hit 600.

And I remember as I read about the achievement
How baseball is all about numbers;
statistics, percentages,
and averages...
Who EVER wants to be average?
Sounds horrific to be averaged?
Is that like being put in your place?
Held back  a year in school
Berated in front of your peers?

But I digress....  Those cold cold numbers that in Math class  we hated and rebelled against, so many relish when it comes
to baseball.
Frigid corporate business this
modern major leage baseball be.
Yet so much warmth associated with it. 
America's past time, Muddville,
Angels in the Outfield,  Babe Ruth,  Robinson,  Clemente, Gibson, Yogi Berra, Yaz, Sammy, Rizzutto, Harry Carayand the Bleacher Bums,  DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Kofax, Marris .
Cubs,Yankees, Amazing Mets,  Red Sox curse,
 and everyone's favorite home town , or adopted new town,  team. 

Players crossing  color lines, breaking records, 

dying gracefully,

famously like Lou Gehrig

and in tragic plane crashes before their time.

I say D... I say D   OH
D O    D  G
Belted out Danny Kaye
D   o  d  g e  r s
He SANG....

And then I read how Griffey played with his dad back in 1990

HITTING a home-run  right after his dad hit a homerun ---
only father-son back to back home run in professional baseball history.
Fans love that shit.     I must still be a fan.

Junior,  Ken Griffey Junior, that is,  left Seattle,
partly to reunite and play with his Dad again.
Griffey Senior made 2,143  hits during his 19 year career and Junior,
got his 2,143 hit on Father's day June 20th, 2004, it was homerun number 500.
Dad was there watching!
You can feel how these numbers mean something warm and wonderful.

I don't take time for baseball anymore,
But I remember being an addict as a boy,
Briefly relapsing in the mid 90s,
Showing my daughters how Pop-Pop taught me to
score the game :   S.O.  strike out  B.B.  base on balls-walk,  HR--  Home Run.
I have wonderful memories of meeting the Mick who wore #7
And walking through the stadium with Pop-pop
as he said Hi to people like they were his friends,
and they smiled warmly back at him.
He would proudly announce he was once
again, going to watch another game with his grandson,
"He's becoming a smart young man,
maybe  a baseball player,  he'd say,
"..He's a left-hander, you know. "He'd add a bit quietly, making it feel special and good.

No.
No baseball player for me....
But say hey....!!!
Junior just
hit home run number 600.

Mighty Casey  jumps to his feet, tips his hat.
And I smile big
feel Pop-Pop smiling too.