7th Game  :  1960 Series

By Paul Blackburn

—for Joel—

Nice day,
sweet October afternoon
Men walk the sun-shot avenues,
                                                     Second, Third, eyes
                                                     intent elsewhere
ears communing with transistors in shirt pockets
                                    Bars are full, quiet,
discussion during commercials
                                                      only
Pirates lead New York 4-1, top of the 6th, 2
Yankees on base,    1 man out
 
What a nice day for all this  !
Handsome women, even
dreamy jailbait, walk
                                      nearly neglected  :
men’s eyes are blank
their thoughts are all in Pittsburgh
 
Last half of the 9th, the score tied 9-all,
Mazeroski leads off for the Pirates
The 2nd pitch he simply, sweetly
                                                           CRACK!
belts it clean over the left-field wall
 
Blocks of afternoon
acres of afternoon
Pennsylvania Turnpikes of afternoon  .  One
                                    diamond stretches out in the sun
                                                     the 3rd base line
                                    and what men come down
                                    it
 
                                    The final score, 10-9
 
Yanquis, come home

Copyright Credit: Paul Blackburn, “7th Game : 1960 Series” from The Selected Poems of Paul Blackburn. Copyright © 1989 by Paul Blackburn. Reprinted by permission of Joan Blackburn.
Source: The Selected Poems of Paul Blackburn (Persea Books, 1989)