When his name was announced
What the silence pronounced
Was the soul of the Sabbath Day crowd
They had come here to see
The last game he would be
In the uniform he wore so proud
He had played twenty years
Through the boos and the cheers
With a thirst, and a love for the game
He would send them away
Filled with awe and dismay
They could see what had earned him his fame
When he’d step to the plate
How his chest would inflate
With the crowd like the wind at his back
He knew what to do
With whatever they threw
When to take, when to give it a whack
He would focus his eyes
His selection was wise
There was steel in his arms when he swung
They were drawn to this place
To watch his style and grace
When they rose it was his praise was sung
This was his church, it’s true
And you sat is his pew
When you came out to watch this man play
He was surely to blame
This was more than a game
What spit had been mixed with his clay?
He had played 20 years
And had earned every cheer
In his mind he still had his youth
But the young hurlers knew
By the pitches they threw
That his body was feeling the truth
Here he’d dove for a ball
There he’d run in the wall
He’d been pitched at, he’d slid hard, he’d run
When his legs were too sore
When his ligaments tore
Still he played, till the season was done
Now he stood at the plate
Contemplating his fate
As the pitcher stood staring him down
“Don’t worry old bum”
Boldly these words had come
From the catcher, who spat on the ground
“It isn’t my call
But he’ll throw you four balls
That’s the way that they want it today.
You are big in this town
But I think you’re a clown
It’s a disgrace they still let you play”
As he walked down to first
He remembered the thirst
That he always had had for this game
Although out of respect
A walk didn’t reflect
Why they’d come here to honor his name
But he’d no time to stew
The next drive went on through
To the wall and he started to run
As past second he ran
He caught sight of the man
Out in center, “man he’s got a gun”
But he bobbled the ball
Played it bad off the wall
And he’d been here often before
He would challenge the play
And he’d make that man pay
If they waved him on in he would score
Once he ran like the wind
Now the legs would not bend
Still he gave it the best that he had
When he rounded third base
You could see in his face
The fervor he had as a lad
As the coach waves him in
He’s urged on by the din
But too late he knows with a gasp
With his spirit strong
He’d excited the throng
But his reach had exceeded his grasp
These last months that he’d spent
On the bench to repent
For his failings brought on by his age
Had prepared him to fail
Striving to no avail
But his heart was igniting a rage
He had not played this long
To have this his swan song
To be mocked by that boy at the plate
They were blocking him wide
Trying to force a slide
Just in case that the ball got there late
They knew with his knee
It’s the wrong place to be
He would have to reach back with his hand
The tag, they were sure
The out would insure
His hourglass was now out of sand
The catcher reached out
For the ball as a shout
From the crowd said they knew he was done
He’d given his best
But he’d failed this last test
He would never deliver this run
He could feel the knee give
And his reason to live
Would be gone when the ump made his call
It was anguish he felt
As hope started to melt
When he heard the loud ‘pop’ of the ball
There guarding the plate
Like St. Peter’s gate
Stood the catcher a sneer on his face
“Old man you’ve had your day
Now it’s your time to pay
You’re too old to handle the pace”
He could not hear the crowd
For his heart beat too loud
As for one final slide he prepared
The catcher bent down
His plight to compound
The ump stooped to see how he fared
He’d be stripped of his pride
At the end of this slide
His career would end in defeat
With the last of his strength
He extended full length
And his dive tore his foe from his feet
The crowd stood to a man
Now one unified fan
And their roar his salvation pronounced
The umps arms spread wide
The catcher lay on his side
And grabbed for the ball as it bounced
Slowly he rose
There was blood on his nose
And the pain in his knee was intense
He should have been proud
As he waved to the crowd
His legacy now was immense
But the man simply turned
To the catcher who’d spurned
This ancient, decrepit old man
For a moment he gazed
At the hand that was raised
With their shake they said all a man can
His career now was through
To this game he’d been true
For his sins he’d atoned here today
They were still in their seats
In reverence of this feat
By the man they had come to watch play
His teammates just stood
For they felt that they should
Let him walk all alone from the field
This game takes its toll
Here he’d given his soul
His redemption, refusing to yield
