Kindred Blue
Baseball lore, columns, videos, comedy, poetry,
photos, history, a dab of Dodgers and more.
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Ron Sokol, longtime columnist, author, and baseball aficionado, tries to keep the hits coming every week. Follow Ron on Twitter at @kindred_blue.
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SOME VINTAGE VIN SCULLY, THE LYRICAL POET OF BASEBALL
KINDRED BLUE RECENT BLOGS
BASEBALL: TO LIST OR NOT TO LIST
Let me ask: Do you keep lists? Would you have a list that tells you where to find the list you were working on the other day? Is that called "listing"? Are you checking your list twice, or is that just for Santa to do? Major league baseball has lists, and I am not...
DID YOU KNOW THAT HITTING IS ROCKET SCIENCE?
Ty Cobb wrote a pamphlet entitled "Science of Batting", published by no less than the Louisville Slugger Company (Hillerich & Bradsby Co., Inc., to be exact). It has topics that range from the bat grip, to the body position and stance, to the psychology of...
BULL PEN?
You come out of the bull pen, you may be asked to get the team out of a jam. Or you may be asked to keep it close, or keep the team ahead. You may indeed be the closer, who is such a key, critical part of the equation. And, the situation you walk, jog or skip into...
I’VE BEEN TRADED?
Is it like being told you are going to be stationed overseas? Perhaps in a place where there's a risk of harm to your person? And, you don't really know even when you'll be back? Or, worse yet, if? Reminds you of a divorce? "Ok, pack your things, and get out!" "Or,...
SOMETIMES IT’S HARD TO FOCUS ON THE GAME
Four photos at the ball park the other evening, over the course of a few innings. The game was of interest, don't get me wrong, but I kept looking at the sky. Not sure just what I was looking for out there, but my buddy next to me was talking, and I don't recall much...
WHEN THE CLOSER IMPLODES
Should there be even the slightest resemblance to anyone alive or no longer alive, it is purely coincidental. And now the poem: The wheels came off and rolled up to the plate the throw at home was far too late "We pay him so much just to save the game, but he blew the...
FACELIFT
I have not had any "work" done. Oh, I could sure use it, but hey, time does what it does. Over the next year, or thereabouts, the ballpark in Los Angeles where the Dodgers play (the Doyers some would say) is getting a $100 million face lift. I cut and pasted the...
MATT-GICIAN
Do you believe in magic? That's a wonderful song from, oh, a few years back, but it is about magic "in a young girl's heart..." This is a bit different. First, you may not have heard of Matt Beaty, or not heard much. He is 26, just up from the minors this year, on...
BASEBALL, THE NATIONAL HEART TIME
Friday afternoon traffic in Los Angeles... if you like crawling you are in for a real treat. By the same token, many are getting off work and looking forward to the weekend. Where is everyone going? In our cars, so often just one to a vehicle. Dodger Stadium was our...
AND NOW THE ANGRY LITTLE BIG BOY
Anger is not such a good thing. I mean, it can motivate. But, if you have enjoyed a beer, and it's the eighth inning. Your team is ahead. Life is good. A very fine pitching job by the starter, and someone comes in from the bull pen to simply keep things intact. ...
INTERVIEW WITH THE BASE BALL
In this unusual piece, our intrepid reporter managed to get an exclusive interview with a baseball, freshly made, and at a major league park. The ball is very unique because it is able to communicate, has a voice, and did not roll away. Following is the verbatim,...
CHAMP
We admire champions. To win a championship is a challenge, a respected feat. To the victor goes the spoils... Ladies and Gentlemen, the Champeeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnn of the World! We salute all sorts of champions. Not just those who triumph in sports, but who...
A SMALL MONUMENTAL MOMENT
Fred is a good friend, many years, turning 60 years young in just a short while. Has been to countless baseball games, countless, but never managed to get a ball. That changed this past Sunday. I happened to take a quick break beginning of the fourth inning,...