"Ray, people will come Ray. They'll come to Iowa for reasons they can't even fathom. They'll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won't mind if you look around, you'll say. It's only $20 per person. They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they'll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game and it'll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh... people will come Ray. People will most definitely come. "and...
Dr. Archibald "Moonlight" Graham: This is my most special place in all the world, Ray. Once a place touches you like this, the wind never blows so cold again. You feel for it, like it was your child.
and another favorite moment:
Dr. Archibald "Moonlight" Graham: Well, you know I... I never got to bat in the major leagues. I would have liked to have had that chance. Just once. To stare down a big league pitcher. To stare him down, and just as he goes into his windup, wink. Make him think you know something he doesn't. That's what I wish for. Chance to squint at a sky so blue that it hurts your eyes just to look at it. To feel the tingling in your arm as you connect with the ball. To run the bases - stretch a double into a triple, and flop face-first into third, wrap your arms around the bag. That's my wish, Ray Kinsella. That's my wish. And is there enough magic out there in the moonlight to make this dream come true?
Doesn't Burt Lancaster talking about the thrill of hitting and playing make you tingle inside!!
and here we are .. on the cusp of the season and ready to see our Fighting Diplomats take on the challenges faced by this wonderful game of baseball . It is 16 degrees outside and the wind is howling but knowing we are close the season ... to the game ....I feel better already.
Your Fighting Diplomats have an uphill climb this year. The Dips graduated 6 starters and returning a pitching staff that struggled last season to reach its potential. Yet they are guardedly optimistic for 2009 and their chances at the Centennial Conference title.
Others may mark the Blue Jays of Johns Hopkins , with their powerful lineup and experienced pitching as the league favorite. Some suggest the Fords of Haverford (despite their unimaginative nickname) and Muhlenburg Mules ( not much better of a nickname) have better chance than Franklin and Marshall at winning.
While I know better than to discount the perspective of seasoned wisdom, I counter that there’s a difference between optimism and realism, hope and faith, ambition and discretion. The 2009 Hopkins squad is indeed loaded and on paper would seem to be odds on favorite. But who among us foresaw Tampa Bay Rays in the World Series last year? I would venture to guess the Rays themselves were not expecting to be there. So baseball offers us the chance something wonderful can emerge while our Fighting Diplomats " feel the tingling in your arm as you connect with the ball run the bases - stretch a double into a triple, and flop face-first into third, wrap your arms around the bag. "
Indeed, if the greatest opportunities are bred from the most formidable obstacles, beginning a baseball season in the 2009 Centennial Conference is akin to entering an auspicious era where vast opportunities await those who are proactively prepared. Yes, Hopkins is that good.
All students of American history recall Thomas Paine and his wisdom " The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph". Paine had a formidable foe as well in the heavily favored British army but Paine did have the luxury of playing all his games at home. This advantage is one shared by Paine and the Diplomats as F and M hosts a doubleheader against the vaunted Blue Jays on April 11th in what shapes up to be a pivotal moment in the schedule.
Antoine de saint Expery wrote if you want to build a ship , don't drum up people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea. He believes successful endeavors are about passion not a mechanical execution of defined steps. I would like to think the author of "The Little Prince" would likely have been a baseball fan as evidenced by his understanding that passion is what makes a person come alive. Your faithful correspondent has an inside source on the Fighting Diplomats squad who reports this years team is confident and exudes the passion required to assault the daunting challenges of the season. More importantly, he also confides the pitching looks great! These insider reports suggest de saint Expery would like to watch this team in action. The Fighting Diplomats take the season manned by a new Head Coach, Adam Taylor, previously with William and Mary. ( Perhaps there is something the Franklin and Marshall administration likes about schools with two names--I wonder if they interviewed candidates from Washington and Lee?). By all accounts, Taylor is the right man to lead the Fighting Diplomats and players are already talking about how he has helped their hitting and the pitchers feel much sharper. Taylor replaces Coach Bill Walkenbach who "walked" to assume the coaching job at his alma mater; Cornell. Taylor represents the 46th baseball coach in Franklin and Marshall baseball history dating back to 1893. By contrast, Amherst College remarkably, has had only two coaches since 1928. Present Amherst coach Bill Thurston retires from the Lord Jeffs after this season, his 44th with the reins. Thurston wrote a note to his alumni ( which includes your faithful correspondent) this winter that he had many many great memories recalling plays the men made over the years. One of the things he is most proud of though was watching so many of his players fall in love with the game, understanding how difficult it is to play it right, developing respect for the game and for those who have played the game. He says" I've spent my life trying to master and teach the game only to learn that the game became my master" . It would seem Thurston has a lot in common with de saint Expury.
We have a journey ahead of us as your Fighting Diplomats prepare to go to Florida for their spring trip and return to take on their conference foes. We learned from Don Quixote that the realization of a quest is not as important as the grandeur of quest itself. Or, the purpose of the journey is .. the journey. We are about to embark on a journey of our own as we navigate the treacherous waters of a baseball season. I hope you bring you along for the ride as we too " fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distance run."
-Your Faithful Correspondent
