Ogden Nash

Line-up for Yesterday

Line-up for Yesterday - meaning Summary

Alphabet of Baseball Greats

This playful A–Z poem catalogs famous early 20th-century baseball players with witty, affectionate caricatures. Each letter names a star and gives a brief, humorous epithet or anecdote—sometimes boasting, sometimes teasing—conveying the speaker’s fan devotion and the sport’s mythology. The concluding stanza elevates these figures to the summit of fame, framing them as emblematic pillars of the game and objects of nostalgic admiration.

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A is for Alex The great Alexander; More Goose eggs he pitched Than a popular gander. B is for Bresnahan Back of the plate; The Cubs were his love, and McGraw his hate. C is for Cobb, Who grew spikes and not corn, And made all the basemen Wish they weren't born. D is for Dean, The grammatical Diz, When they asked, Who's the tops? Said correctly, I is. E is for Evers, His jaw in advance; Never afraid To Tinker with Chance. F is for Fordham And Frankie and Frisch; I wish he were back With the Giants, I wish. G is for Gehrig, The Pride of the Stadium; His record pure gold, His courage, pure radium. H is for Hornsby; When pitching to Rog, The pitcher would pitch, Then the pitcher would dodge. I is for Me, Not a hard-hitting man, But an outstanding all-time Incurable fan. J is for Johnson The Big Train in his prime Was so fast he could throw Three strikes at a time. K is for Keeler, As fresh as green paint, The fastest and mostest To hit where they ain't. L is for Lajoie Whom Clevelanders love, Napoleon himself, With glue in his glove. M is for Matty, Who carried a charm In the form of an extra brain in his arm. N is for Newsom, Bobo's favorite kin. You ask how he's here, He talked himself in. O is for Ott Of the restless right foot. When he leaned on the pellet, The pellet stayed put. P is for Plank, The arm of the A's; When he tangled with Matty Games lasted for days. Q is for Don Quixote Cornelius Mack; Neither Yankees nor years Can halt his attack. R is for Ruth. To tell you the truth, There's just no more to be said, Just R is for Ruth. S is for Speaker, Swift center-field tender, When the ball saw him coming, It yelled, "I surrender." T is for Terry The Giant from Memphis Whose .400 average You can't overemphis. U would be 'Ubell if Carl were a cockney; We say Hubbell and Baseball Like Football and Rockne. V is for Vance The Dodger's very own Dazzy; None of his rivals Could throw as fast as he. W is for Wagner, The bowlegged beauty; Short was closed to all traffic With Honus on duty. X is the first of two x's in Foxx Who was right behind Ruth with his powerful soxx. Y is for Young The magnificent Cy; People battled against him, But I never knew why. Z is for Zenith The summit of fame. These men are up there. These men are the game.

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