With the elimination of the Atlanta Braves in the second round of the baseball playoff series in the National League, this will be an attempt to put some humor into the dismal showing by Lewis Grizzard.
In 1995 after his death in 1994 Villard Books selectively published “Grizzardisms- The Wit and Wisdom of Lewis Grizzard”, a collection of his pearls to support the National Past Time (now not in Highland Park):
1. “One of the best things a man can do for his son is pass along a love for baseball;”
2. “Pulling for the Braves is like pulling for a Democratic nominee for president. It’s your classic effort in futility;”
3. “As an Atlantan, I wish we could have kept the Braves our little secret, sort of like having an alcoholic uncle;”
4. “Relief pitchers in baseball are paid according to how many ‘saves’ they have. Secretaries should be paid on the same basis for the number of times they save their boss from embarrassing situations, such as being discovered as total incompetents;”
5. “I don’t think anybody really likes the Yankees, not even the Yankees themselves. I think some people say they are Yankees fans only as a means of getting attention. I hate these people, too, and I hope they get constipated;”
6. “What George Steinbrenner has done is unforgiveable: With him at the helm, it’s not fun to hate the Yankees anymore. You just sort of feel sorry for them;”
7. “As we have proved with many of our popular American sports, it is better to have the violence on the field than in the bleachers.”
According to one cynical old baseball fan (they even remember Engel Stadium) the demise of the Peach State’s Cherokee Nation were good enough to succeed in the regular season until Bryce Harper and the Phillies made them “also rans” again that was caused by the greed of the billionaire owners who wanted to extend the playoff season by punishing teams that had prevailed over 162 games to have the best records in baseball.
Although the probable winner of the Most Valuable Player (Acuna) and the only twenty game winner (Strider) in the National League are good choices their individual awards pale in comparison to the disappointment of the loyal Tomahawk fans across the South and America.
(The rich baseball owners will get richer—just like in Choo Choo City!)
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You can reach Jerry Summers at jsummers@summersfirm.com
Jerry Summers