There was nothing like pole vault. Our equipment was flawed: old fiberglass poles with no give. Coach knew nothing about it and left us to our own devices. Half a dozen guys tried. Sprint hard as we might, the pole didn’t budge. We climbed it like pillaging savages. Between stints climbing the pole---8 feet, 9 … Continue reading Little League IV: ‘Glory’
Legacy
Little League III: Pole Vault
I tried out for high school ball the following year. I hit longer, straighter flies than I had at tryouts the year before. The coach---who slept on a basement bed in the very apartment where I delivered my middle school coach's newspaper---already knew the story. ‘He’ll hit in tryouts. Goose-egg during the season.’ Rated beneath … Continue reading Little League III: Pole Vault
Little League II: 0 for 12
My father ran bread routes for Wonder most mornings. He delayed the deliveries to throw me curves and fastballs when tryouts came around. He zeroed my hands and eyes, quickened my bat to the rawhide in the pre-dawn twilight. Confident still in the afternoon, I showed for tryouts with a quick bat and hit high, … Continue reading Little League II: 0 for 12
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