Baseball and Classicism

Baseball and Classicism

By Tom Clark b. 1941 Tom Clark
Every day I peruse the box scores for hours   
Sometimes I wonder why I do it
Since I am not going to take a test on it   
And no one is going to give me money

The pleasure’s something like that of codes   
Of deciphering an ancient alphabet say   
So as brightly to picturize Eurydice
In the Elysian Fields on her perfect day

The day she went 5 for 5 against Vic Raschi

Tom Clark, “Baseball and Classicism” from Light and Shade: New and Selected Poems. Copyright © 2006 by Tom Clark. Used with the permission of Coffee House Press, www.coffeehousepress.org.

Source: Sleepwalker’s Fate: New and Selected Poems (1992)

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Poet Tom Clark b. 1941

POET’S REGION U.S., Western

SCHOOL / PERIOD New York School (2nd Generation)

Subjects Sports & Outdoor Activities, Heroes & Patriotism, Mythology & Folklore, Activities, Greek & Roman Mythology

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Biography

Tom Clark has combined the diverse roles of poet, biographer, novelist, dramatist, reviewer, and sportswriter during his writing career. In addition to dozens of books of poetry, a play, two novels, two story collections, and numerous biographies of literary figures, Clark's works include a book co-written with star baseball pitcher Mark Fidrych, poems about such sports legends as Catfish Hunter, Vida Blue and Bert Campaneris, . . .

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Poems by Tom Clark

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Poem Categorization

SUBJECT Sports & Outdoor Activities, Heroes & Patriotism, Mythology & Folklore, Activities, Greek & Roman Mythology

POET’S REGION U.S., Western

SCHOOL / PERIOD New York School (2nd Generation)

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Originally appeared in Poetry magazine.

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