Purity and progress

There was no time limit,
But in those days darkness was the clock.
It wasn’t until night ball that the game might never stop.

Heroes

Old time players drank.
They didn’t take steroids.
Proud and hungover,
They inspired men and boys.

The Babe

Ruth didn’t let little kids stay shoved to the back.
He urged them forward.
Wrote them his autograph.

The opponents

Cobb looked upon baseball as work.
To Ruth it was pride and joy.
Ty was considered a jerk.
Babe never lost his boy.

Changing of the guard

Ruth eclipsed Cobb’s sun.
Today’s America had begun.

Cobb envied Ruth’s swing.
Poetry in motion that made Babe king.

Changing times

Cobb exemplified
America’s struggle to the top.
Ruth showed us how to glory
With everything we got.

Go for it

Pitchers used to have the power
Defense the name of the game.
Fathers preached by the hour
In life it’s exactly the same.

Ruth arrived with godly might
People daydreamed deep into night.
It makes sense
To swing for the fence.

Dad had to understand.
Ruth created the modern man.

Unabashed

When fans saw Ruth unleash his power
They erupted with a roar.

Never being allowed to flower
They clamored for more.

1914

Europe went to war.
Ruth arrived at Boston’s door.
With war’s end, Europe gasped at death.
Two years later, Babe took away a nation’s breathe.

The black prince

Learned to play first like it was ballet.
Grew up in the Santa Clara Valley,
Where each March,
When the season started,
Light and clouds shifted above blooming orchards,
In unforgettable interplay.