The names may change, but the stories remain the same

Via Banjo comes this story about the oldest living Major League baseball player, and some of the many stories of the old days he has to tell. This was the one Banjo highlighted, about how Hall of Fame pitcher Lefty Grove impressed a visiting scout:

"The scout, Ira Thomas, goes out into the woods to look for him, and eventually, here comes this tall, rawboned guy. And he's got squirrel tails tied around his belt, with the heads hanging down. So the first question Ira Thomas asks him is, 'Are you Lefty Grove?'

"And Lefty says, 'I be.'

"He said, 'Well, where's your gun.'

" 'I don't use no gun.'

"He said, 'Well, how do you kill the squirrels?'

" 'I kill them with rocks.'

"He says, 'I don't believe you.'

"And Lefty says, 'Well, you see that insulator on that crossbar?' And he takes one of the rocks from his pocket, and throws it with his right hand -- and the glass just shatters in all directions.

"And Thomas is amazed, but he says, 'I thought you were a left-hander.'

"He says, 'I am. But when I throw it left-handed, I tear them all up.' "

It's a great story. It's also one I read years ago in a book of baseball stories, circa 1949, by old-time sportswriter Arthur Dailey that we had at my parents' house, except that it was about Dizzy Dean. I figured it was a legend when I first read it 30 years ago, and seeing it repeated about a different pitcher just confirms that feeling. But it's still a great story, one that ought to be true even if it isn't. And it's another reason why I love the game of baseball. There's enough characters in its history that can be fitted into such a tale and still be believable. You gotta love it.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on June 23, 2008 to Baseball