"Lining-Up (for Charles North)" [by David Lehman]

This poem was inspired by a dream I had in which Amy Gerstler and I were on the same softball team, with her in lead-off position playing shortstop. Charles North has written many great “line ups” – for example, an all-philosopher team as well as teams consisting exclusively of diseases, vegetables, and famous couples – so I thought I would dedicate the poem to him, a confirmed Gemini, born on June 9. Charles tells me he is happy to be in the lineup, though he has reservations about the wisdom of playing him at first base. “I’m a righty,” he points out. But so were Gil Hodges and Steve Garvey, no?

Lining Up
for Charles North

SS Amy Gerstler
2B David Lehman
3B David Shapiro (L) *
LF Paul Violi
IB Charles North**
RF Tony Towle
CF Elaine Equi
C Ted Berrigan
P Ron Padgett (L)
Relief pitcher Vincent Katz (ROY)***
PH NL / DH AL Terence Winch ****

General manager: Harry Mathews
Front office wise men: Bob Hershon, Mitch Sisskind
Scouts: David Trinidad, Jerome Sala, Tim Dlugos, Maxine Chernoff, Paul Hoover

Manager: Anne Waldman
Bench coach: John Ashbery
First base Koch: Kenneth Coach
Third base coach: Frank O'Hara
Trainer: James Schuyler
Pitching coach: Joseph Ceravolo
Batting coach: Larry Fagin
Bullpen coach: Bernadette Mayer

Press Relations: Joe Brainard
TV announcers: Paul Auster (and a player to be named later)
Radio announcers: Phillip Lopate, Andrei Codrescu
Broadway adaptation: Lehman Engel

Critic: Tom Clark

* Left-hander
** To be played by Chris Noth in the TV version.
*** Winner, rookie of the year award.
*** Switch hitter; to be deployed as a pinch hitter in the National League and as a designated hitter in the American League.

Comments

[Martin Stannard]

This is great fun - although, as an Englishman, I have no idea about baseball and its "positions". But that hasn't stopped me enjoying Charles's Lineups, or enjoying this. Incidentally, I have just interviewed Charles (at some length) for a UK online magazine ... the interview should be online in a few weeks time. I'll let you know...

[The Best American Poetry]

Thanks for the good comment, Martin. Baseball is so different from cricket there'd be no way to define it, although I do think an excellent creative writing assignment for a North American is to explain baseball to an Englishman or -woman in 500 words or less.
Looking forward to your interview with Charles.

[Martin Stannard]

I'm sure you are aware of the classic explanation of cricket - You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.

When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay all out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game!

I hope that's clear.

[Martin Stannard]

Oh, that should have been a reply to yours, but I pressed the wrong button....

[Andrei Codrescu]

Yeah, but as you can see from my post on FB today I was also a pinch hitter:)

[The Best American Poetry]

It went in one ear and out the other, Martin, just as you predicted. -- DL

[Vincent Katz]

I don't how I missed this when it first came out, but as we are in the thick of another baseball season, I am sending in my appreciation now for this great tribute and also my thanks for having made the team! I'll do my best not to blow any saves. - From another confirmed Gemini