It’s been a while since I last shared a Hall of Fame induction speech here. Ichiro Suzuki’s speech from yesterday’s induction ceremony in Cooperstown was so good, I just can’t not share it. It turns out, in addition to being a great ballplayer, Ichiro is quite the comedian, as well.
While country is not typically my go-to music to listen to, I have to concede that some pretty great baseball songs come out of this genre. The nostalgia just seems to work well with this style.
On July 18, 1927, Athletics outfielder Ty Cobb became the first major leaguer to collect his 4,000th career hit. Cobb hit a double off his former Tigers teammate, Sam Gibson, at Navin Field in Detroit. The hit came in the first inning of a 5-3 loss for the A’s.
Cobb retired after the 1928 season with 4,191 hits, a record that will stand until Pete Rose breaks it in 1985.
I don’t play for love of the game. I play to win. I want to play together. You live with these guys more than your own family.
~Andres Galarraga
Happy 4th of July to all my US-based readers! Please stay safe and I hope you have an enjoyable holiday.
This piece makes me reminisce about playing ball in the backyard with my brothers while growing up. All the neighbors knew this was a favorite pastime of ours, and I do recall an occasion or two when the ball was indeed tossed back to us. High fives for hitting it over the fence were rare, however. Whoever hit the ball over was now responsible for retrieving it, so it was often more beneficial as a hitter to keep it on the ground.
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Jeremy hit the ball today
when he and I went out to play.
He hit it, oh, so far away,
a neighbor had to throw it back!
Jeremy hit the ball so hard
it flew into the neighbor’s yard
and caught the other kids off-guard;
they thought it was an air attack!
Jeremy hit the ball again,
above the sun, beyond the wind;
as we watched it soar and slowly spin …
we gave high-fives for his awesome smack!