A little misty today with the news that Duke Snider moved on to the perpetual Hall of Fame. When we were young grade school Beaver Cleavers with our mitt slung over our bat, gathering up all the neighborhood guys for a sandlot game, it was the Duke, and Mickey and Willie who captured our imaginations.
And as it proved out over the course of his entire life, he was a role model and a great example of how the athlete of yesteryear conducted themselves. Contrast him with today's self-absorbed, underperforming, overpaid TMZ celebrity type egojocks - no, don't; it is too depressing. Guys like the Duke don't come around too often and that is too bad for baseball fans and for our country. As the Duke was yanking them out of Ebbets Field with great regularity, our post war nation was humming along with a sound economy, job growth, a sense of fair play and hard work, and a sense of community.
No, this wasn't all because of the Duke, but it probably was because most people tried to live their lives like the Duke played baseball - with pride, commitment, perseverance, good humor and a respect for teammates and opponents.
Now we are facing public employee strikes, football lockouts, budget deficits all over the country, and a national malaise that doesn't seem to be improving. Too bad there's not a Duke to lead us out of this. Well maybe he's somewhere in the minors hoping for a cup of coffee with the big team. Let's all hope he gets invited to spring training and can stick with the club. Come on Duke, talk to the owner about this.
BBFN - Fanatticman
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