incredibly, almost painfully good. i was nearly instantly glued to the page, and as soon as the name 'wade boggs' came out i knew the direction you were headed, but it didnt matter, you delivered on it so effectively. if i were asked what the library needed yesterday, 'nonfiction baseball story ' wouldn't have been it. but i would have been wrong. +1
This was a truly wonderful little tale. Baseball is not a sport I care about in its entirety, but I know a lot about it because of events like this- the rarities, the oddities. And this piece captured one such beautifully. I love it here. I love it on the WL. I love this piece.
-Avalon
I watch the yonder hills
See foodwrenches toil in dust
Let their cacophonous calls
Rend our bodies to rust
I can't believe this actually happened, god. What a masterful way of bringing both the importance and also the pointlessness of this event into words. The mundanity of the writing juxtaposes really well with the absurdity of it all, especially against the realism it all has, those small moments on describing the future of the players, and the bit with the wife embody this the best. The narrator has a very strong aura to them as well, which, again, juxtaposes really well with how absurd this all feels as an event. I like this one a lot. +1
This is the only time I have ever been entertained by sports. Simple in concept and direct in execution though this is the intensity and clarity of its prose carried me through it without slowing and engaged me with something that I am twice removed from- once for not liking sports, and once for being British and thinking that baseball is just rounders with a false moustache. Excellent.
Loooove it. A good story told very, very strongly. I adore the direction you took with it. Genuinely made me a bit emotional
Sports? Nah, not my cup of tea. But this? Boy-howdy this was a fantastic read. It's surprisingly enrapturing and I relished every little detail. The atmosphere built was fantastic, I could feel the cold wind of the night bearing down on me as I watched in horror and bewilderment from the stands. I also love how you went into Bogg's background right before the swing. It morphs his choice from selfish insanity to pure, unadulterated rationale and dedication, and I wouldn't have expected him to pick anything else. Though if I was a teammate, I'd have wanted to strangle him.
I think ultimately what stands out to me in this piece is the focus on the nearly unanimous dedication and love shown. From the umpire, to the fans, to Huppert, to Bogg. It's glorious. Truly, baseball is America's pastime.
Goodbye, Zion.
Sports meh. This story excellent. Human pain and suffering, oft forgotten when sports are at play because we see humans as pawns with faces and garbled words and little annoyances that get in the way of perfection, of filling their average stats precisely as they should — you have reintroduced. You have reminded of what it means to do a sport — the drudgery, the unfair, the psychological pressure to win versus the human survival to let go. Well done. Beautiful.
-Styg
What is life if not the contrast between what has been and what will become?
I really like the way this is narrated- it feels like it has a journalistic eye, but it maintains a distinctive voice and personal care for its subject matter that lends it a lot of charm. As I said in chat, it does feel heavily indebted to Jon Bois, especially in the way it introducing and provides commentary on its elements and introduces its twists (eg "The outcome of the game is of little consequence, but the players are still going to give it their all. They all have something to prove […] As the first pitch is thrown, they cannot imagine what the night is about to do to them." and "This is the last time that either team will score for twelve innings.") The way it weaves details like the hunger, cold, and umpire's decision-making into the rest of the narrative, and how it characterizes the different players and stories involved makes this a very rich, rewarding tapestry.
Honestly, rereading it, I can't really remember much of what my critique was. I think here and there are some sentences that aren't quite as tuned as they could be, maybe times where you try to push a point a bit too far and could have stood to hold back a bit ("They do not need the promise of such rewards to stay with this game into the early hours of the morning, of course, which is precisely what makes them deserving. They earn those passes by showing that they would do it all again for no reward whatsoever." struck me as bit much), but overall it's a really well-told story. I think at times you try to attribute too much to the player's thoughts and emotion when a bit more distance would have helped ("The players' hearts must fill with optimism as Corey steps onto home plate. They must imagine the hearty meals, warm showers, and soft mattresses that await them in their houses and hotel rooms after this game is over. ") Other than that, I don't have much to change.
read YONQ