Baseball. For the Chicago Cubs, opening day is today. In the hallowed halls of Wrigley Field, the Cubs of Chicago and the Nationals of Washington will meet, Ryan Dempster on the mound for the Cubs, the flamethrower Stephen Strasburg on the mound for the Nationals. I have been a Cubs fan for much of myContinue reading “On Opening Day 2012”
Tag Archives: Baseball
On My Independence Day Plans
July 4th. Two epochal, world-changing events have fallen on July 4th. The first comes on July 4, 1776. In Kent that day, Horatio Hornblower was born, and he would become one of the Royal Navy’s greatest heroes, distinguishing himself at an early age and playing a significant role in the defeat of Napoleon. The secondContinue reading “On My Independence Day Plans”
On Baseball’s National Anthem
I get e-mails from the History Channel. I must have signed up for their newletter at some point in the past, but I couldn’t say when that was. Normally, I just delete them, unless the subject line looks interesting. And yesterday, I got a very interesting one. To me, anyway. “Forgotten Baseball Poet Receives StarContinue reading “On Baseball’s National Anthem”
A Tale of Two Baseball Caps
Yesterday, the Stars & Stripes Washington Nationals Baseball Cap arrived. Baseball teams started wearing patriotic baseball caps on national holiday weekends a few years ago. (And yes, the Toronto Blue Jays have their own patriotic cap, with the Maple Leaf instead of the Stars and Stripes.) Despite my love of the Cubs :cubs: I don’tContinue reading “A Tale of Two Baseball Caps”
On Baseball’s Sad Lexicon
Exactly one hundred years ago today — July 12, 1910 — one of the most famous poems about the Chicago Cubs :cubs: was published in the New York Evening Mail — Franklin P. Adams’ “Baseball’s Sad Lexicon”: These are the saddest of possible words: “Tinker to Evers to Chance.” Trio of bear cubs, and fleeterContinue reading “On Baseball’s Sad Lexicon”
On a Tale of Two Baseball Teams
As I write this, the Chicago Cubs :cubs: have a record of 35 wins, 46 losses. The Washington Nationals have a similar record — 36 wins, 46 losses. The Nats are 12 1/2 games back in the National League East, the Cubs :cubs: are 10 1/2 back in the National League Central. And yet. AndContinue reading “On a Tale of Two Baseball Teams”
On World Cup Musings
I’ll be honest. I’m indifferent to the World Cup. I’ve nothing against soccer. I like Hibs in the Scottish Premier League, for instance. I’ve played FIFA on the PS2 and Xbox; I’ve even been decent at playing it. Nick Hornby’s Fever Pitch is a fantastic book — and Jimmy Fallon’s Fever Pitch is an utterContinue reading “On World Cup Musings”
On Baseball Movies
Spring is here, the start of a new baseball season is at hand. This year feels auspicious. The Cubs :cubs: are having a solid spring. Who knows what the coming season will hold? Could this be the year? Such is the hope of the Cubs fan. 😉 Instead of ruminating on the coming season, let’sContinue reading “On Baseball Movies”
On Baseball, the Harbinger of Spring
I look out from my office window at the glacier that still lays across Maryland, and a thought brightens my seasonally-affected spirits. The knowledge that pitchers and catchers have reported in Florida and Arizona. Soon, on fields of green, the boys of summer will be back. The crack of the bat, the smell of theContinue reading “On Baseball, the Harbinger of Spring”
On Thanksgiving Day Musings
Last night, I moved a few things on my desk — I was looking for my Age of Empires 3 disc, because I wanted to commit some war crimes — and the rejection letter from Random House for the Merlin novel, and the outline for said novel, were sitting there. It’s a lovely rejection letter.Continue reading “On Thanksgiving Day Musings”