51 YEARS AGO, MY INTRO TO CALVINISM: Today, October 21st, will be celebrated across the pond by remembering Nelson entering the aquatic arena at Trafalgar in 1805 a 6 ship underdog & pitching a 20 ship to nothing shutout against the French. Over here, on the eve of the World Series, Tampa Bay & its #15 major league market size will face-off against smallest MLB market Milwaukee Brewers who just took down the Dodgers & Shohei Ohtani’s $33,333 a minute check stub, for diamond supremacy like Henry V & his happy English few against the French nobles at Agincourt. And to continue bashing the French in this paragraph, can you imagine how proud the parents of high schoolers are, as their riotous progeny channel prisoner number 24601, Jan Valjean on the Champs-Ellesse?

      Tonight over on the YouTube, just like this night in 1975 when the baseball commissioner seemed as inept & in the pockets of the owners as the present day commissioner but did seem to have an affection for the sport he front manned, I watch Game 6 of the World Series & Boston’s Bernie homer in living color late to send the game to extras against the Cincinnati club led by Joe, & Johnny, & Pete Rose. The all time hit king Rose (his human frailties, unknown at the time, won’t be mentioned here) who entered every game that season as one of MLB’s highest paid players at just over $1,000 a game & was guaranteed to exit the game with the dirtiest uniform.

      As the epic night wore on, thanks to more Fenway heroics from Dewey’s glove & arm in right field, again in living color with Joe & Tony & hometown announcer Dick on the call, my father informed me I needed to go to bed at the corner of Awahila Drive & Sunalay Lane. However, I could watch on the little black & white portable tv with the rabbit ear antenna adjusted just so, in my bedroom.

    I watched as Pudge swung, & waved, & homered over the Green Monster much later. So much later it was October 22nd, & the roundtripper sent everyone to Game 7. This Red Sox fan, during Game 7, had his first two face to face confrontations with Calvinism as the Spaceman threw an ill timed eephus pitch that Tony Perez took yard less than 21 hours later. In the 9th, round 2 as Sox hero Yaz popped up for the last out. Yaz revived the role of Sissyphus in the ‘78 playoff popping up of Goose of the Bronx. Miss Julie had her first rabbit ear aided, past midnight brush with the disease of New England Calvinism when introduced by the Bosox McNamara’s failure to sub Stapleton for first sacker Billy Buck in the Fall Classic’s 1986 Game 6, slightly into 15 days of wedded bliss in apartment 57.      

     During the overtime in ‘75, Pete Rose walked to the plate & queried Carlton Fisk, “…isn’t this fun?” If the millionaires, more concerned with exit velos, launch angles, & walk up music than hitting the cut off man or hitting to the opposite field or way too accepting of the 3 outcomes of homer, walk, or K  while playing for checks signed by billionaires had that attitude, I might find joy in the MLB again…& the MLB might actually have a chance of me watching them play, barring a lockout, in 2027.