July 14, 2011
(Nolan) Ryan called his catcher to the mound and told him to tell the hitter, “Nothing but heat.” Which is something of a direct challenge in the same way that spitting in a man’s face is something of an insult.
(Dick) Allen looked out at Ryan and said, “Let’s get it on.” A few pitches later he flew out to right, and when he jogged past the mound he smiled at Ryan and said, “You got me.”
Reggie (Jackson) said nothing at all. He flew out to the leftfielder. He says it was a line drive. Ryan says it was routine.
(via A look back at Tony Kornheiser’s 1980 profile of Nolan Ryan for Inside Sports magazine - Grantland)
September 11, 2011
To defenders of baseball and literary fiction, the charges against each are familiar, and overlapping: too slow, too precious, not enough action. The only realistic response is a resigned shrug. Guilty, and so what?
The Art of Fielding - By Chad Harbach - Book Review - NYTimes.com
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#NYTBR #Art of Fielding #baseball #Chad Harbach #baseball lit
October 3, 2011
“Brooklyn’s collective memory still bears the image of [Ralph] Branca’s pitch to Thomson. The significance of baseball, more than other sports, lies in the very nature of the game—slow and spread out and rambling. It’s a game of history and memory, a kind of living archive.”
—Don DeLillo, in a Q&A on Grantland
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#Don DeLillo #baseball #ralph branca #baseball lit
October 7, 2011
from The FeelingHappy Yankee Elimination Day! A baseball holiday we can all celebrate.
October 24, 2011
I asked Murakami if he reread “1984” while writing “1Q84.” He said he did, and it was boring. (Not that this is necessarily bad; at one point I asked him why he liked baseball. “Because it’s boring,” he said.)
The Fierce Imagination of Haruki Murakami - NYTimes.com
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#NYTimes Magazine #Murakami #baseball #baseball lit #1984 #1Q84
October 28, 2011
The extra sense of control from the ritual leads to calmness, and calm leads to better performance, explains Steinberg. Whether there are any tangible, special properties in the lucky charm is just beside the point for a sports psychologist.
What’s the power of a good luck charm? - CNN.comNovember 10, 2011
Baseball humbled me. I made my slick, cynical predictions… and what happens? Magic. I was in a bar for St. Louis’s epic victory in Game 6 of the World Series, and all around me grown men and women slapped their heads (slapped their heads!) with each dramatic turn of the most amazing game I have ever seen. Great sport can be like great art—transcendent.
Jess Walter, HOBART picks the 2011 Season, revisitedNovember 16, 2011
The significance of baseball, more than other sports, lies in the very nature of the game—slow and spread out and rambling. It’s a game of history and memory, a kind of living archive.
Don DeLillo, as interviewed by Rafe Bartholomew in Grantland (via fwriction)(via mightyflynn)
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#baseball #baseball lit #Don DeLillo #grantland
December 12, 2011
Happy to write an essay on baseball scorecards. I teach baseball lit at Northwestern, am a Cubs season ticket holder, and keep score religiously. How would I submit? Word length? Deadline? Bill SavageAnonymous
Would love to read it!
Check out our guidelines and submission manager here:
http://hobartpulp.submishmash.com/submit
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#Wish List #baseball #scorecards #submission
December 26, 2011
this is rad.
Ted Williams’ batting averages by pitch location. My favorite exhibit at the baseball Hall of Fame.
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#baseball #Ted Williams #Hall of Fame
