ON VISITING THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME

ON VISITING THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME

By Linda Benanti

In crisp morning air between Adirondacks and Catskills
a spectrum of ages descends from tour buses.
 
Immortals await.
 
Babe, The Iron Horse, Joltin’ Joe—
bronze smiles cast beneath visored caps.
Mickey still stands outside the dugout
eyes on the pitcher, holding his bat.
Williams, Mays, Hammerin’ Hank—
and Jackie Robinson with a room all his own.
 
World War II Veterans peer into glass cases,
they pause to read words on a page,
FDR’s letter to the commissioner:
The games should continue during the War.
Boy Scouts line up to see faded jerseys
and age-cracked shoes with curled-up toes,
reverent whispers and soft exclamations:
But these clothes could fit ordinary men!

As tour buses align in noonday sun,
a rumble of engines and sharp smell of diesel.
Scouts—a blur of khaki and green
rush to board and compare souvenirs
but Veterans linger . . .
for a quick cigarette and a backward glance,
while next to the curb, on a small stretch of grass,
a father’s ball arcs
toward his son’s new glove.

Linda Benanti is a classical pianist who holds degrees in English Literature and Publishing and Communications. Her feature stories have been published in regional newspapers as well as in Harvard Magazine. Her work has appeared in the literary journal Peregrine and the short story anthology A Tribute to Orpheus. In 2020, she won First Prize in the Cape Cod Writer’s Center Pandemic Story Contest with her entry, “Einstein in the Time of Covid-19.” Linda lives on Cape Cod, Massachusetts—if not exactly in the heart of Red Sox Nation, then at least in its sandy toes. She was born and raised in New Jersey and has been a lifelong New York Yankees fan. Her earliest and best baseball memory is sitting behind the press box in the original Yankee Stadium, Rizzuto calling the game, with Murcer and Munson on the field. A recent visit to Cooperstown provided the inspiration for her poem, “On Visiting the Baseball Hall of Fame.” Linda can be reached on LinkedIn.

The Twin Bill is a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. You can support The Twin Bill by donating here.