He Clearly failed to live up to his potential
— assuming that he had potential.
He Clearly found his place in the record book
— a place that he would gladly misplace.
John Clearly, from Irish Cork, was a Senator
— for one inning in 1945,
a reliever who managed one-third of an inning
against the Boston Red Sox
(gave up five hits and three walks — but
he did strike out pitcher Dave Ferriss!). The man
known as “Fire” gave up seven earned runs
in his singular single mound appearance.
He never pitched in the Majors before or after.
He lives in infernal eternal infamy,
with a “career” ERA of 189.0.
You can look it up.
But here’s the thing: He was, for an eye-blink,
a Major Leaguer. Can you say the same?
——————- by Herbert Munshine