We start the roundup with George Will’s tribute to the just-deceased Yogi Berra. It’s over for Yogi, but not for our memories of him.
Let me add that not only was Berra clearly the best catcher, by far, of the first half-century of baseball’s live-ball era, and not only did he utter numerous unintentional witticisms, but he also was the author of a wonderful grace note that it took me years to appreciate.
With Berra managing the New York Mets in the World Series, in the great Willie Mays’ last season in baseball. Berra famously kept Mays on the bench rather than using him as a pinch hitter when there were two outs in the ninth inning of the final game. As Mays was my idol (I was 9 years old), I was furious. And it took me years to understand Berra’s garbled explanation, which amounted to saying that he wanted to use Mays to try to get a hit for the win, but not a hit for a tie.
But here’s what the wise old Berra was thinking: If Mays makes the final out of the World Series in a losing effort, it would be a horrible way to end his career. But if he pinch-hits when the game is tied, then he can’t be the goat — because the game will continue and he won’t have made the final out — but he can be the hero if he does get a hit. Rather than put Mays in a win-lose situation, Berra wanted him in a win-draw situation. It was no secret that Mays and Berra, for whatever reason, didn’t see eye to eye, and Mays of course wanted the chance to bat. But in retrospect, Berra’s reasoning was sound, and also thoughtful.
Yes, we could “observe a lot just by watching” how Berra operated…..
Okay, onto other subjects.
Trump Hides the Left’s Own Crazies, by Heather Wilhelm.
A Light Shines in Harlem, by Wyatt Tee Walker and Steve Klinsky.
Median Income in United States: Still Falling, by Erin Mundahl. (In other words, Obamanomics still is failing.)
Hillary Clinton’s Empire of Dirt, by Victor Davis Hanson.
How Reliable are the Climate Models, by Mike Jonas….
… which, by the way, recalls an earlier piece I highlighted somewhere back on this site a few months ago by my good friend Jim Guirard: The Branch Carbonian Cult’s Actual ‘Deniers’ and ‘Skeptics.’
Happy reading! — Quin
