Playing ball at the White House
It wasn’t like I had been here for ages when the fax came into our office that some “really exciting” news was going to be announced for the then-Challenger League. Actually, I had only been here a few months when I found out I would be covering a group of local kids playing baseball on the White House Lawn.
Gee, welcome to the job, right?
I wish I could give you names, faces, play-by-play and the like. But time, they say, does dim some memories and while six years isn’t a lot to some, it’s an almost lifetime to those of us whose days are filled with names, faces and score sheets.
I remember the heat. While fans were nice and cozy in the bleachers in the shade, the media was corralled in dead center field behind a snow fence under the blazing sun.
Nah, don’t even bother asking. There was nothing for us to drink.
Tons of Secret Service. In camouflage walking the Lawn, in black suits watching and crawling on the roof tops.
Cal Ripken Jr. looking at me like I had worms coming out of my nose when I asked, “What brings you here?” and responding by looking at the field and saying simply, “Those kids.” Or Mark Prior coaching first base before he would break the hearts of Cub fans. Oh look, I wonder what gutter they found David Segui in so he could coach third that game. Of course, Harold Reynolds giving the whole game that ESPN feel (OK, bad choice of words with Mr. Reynolds) by barking out the play-by-play.
I do remember it was a blast. The kids had fun and so did I despite the sunburn and lack of a drink.
Finally found a soda machine in the White House press room—it cost me $2.50 for a Coke. Nice.
And another quick thing: Why haven’t I posted this week, you ask? I’ve been on vacation. Back at the office on Monday when the Daily Pooch Punt will, once again, not talk about how great it is to be Boston fan. Maybe we’ll talk about, oh, I don’t know, something local.
