I am reading a book called Riding With the Blue Moth. It is a true story about a man who rides a bike across the country as a way of dealing with the tragic death of his son. The author is Bill Hancock whose job it is to set up the NCAA basketball tournament every year. He has a lot of sports quotes throughout the book. Last night I was reading and he used a quote from Joe McCarthy’s “Ten Commandments of Baseball”. I played a lot of baseball and never heard of the “Ten Commandments of Baseball”; so I Googled it. I was glad I did. It is pure conventional, homespun wisdom. But if you read between the lines it is about what we should all do in our daily lives. I particularly like commandment #2 and am personally working on that one. If I can make my life as simple as playing baseball I can really improve things. Because I love baseball!Ten Commandments for Success in Baseball
by Joe McCarthy (1949)
1.Nobody ever became a ballplayer by walking after a ball.
2.You will never become a .300 hitter unless you take the bat off your shoulder.
3.An outfielder who throws in back of a runner is locking the barn after the horse is stolen.
4.Keep your head up and you may not have to keep it down.
5.When you start to slide, slide. He who changes his mind may have to change a good leg for a bad one.
6.Do not alibi on bad hops. Anybody can field the good ones.
7.Always run them out. You never can tell.
8.Do not quit.
9.Do not fight too much with the umpires. You cannot expect them to be as perfect as you are.
10.A pitcher who hasn't control hasn't anything.
I figure there should be an Eleventh one, so I will add it:
11. Always wear a cup!
3.An outfielder who throws in back of a runner is locking the barn after the horse is stolen.
4.Keep your head up and you may not have to keep it down.
5.When you start to slide, slide. He who changes his mind may have to change a good leg for a bad one.
6.Do not alibi on bad hops. Anybody can field the good ones.
7.Always run them out. You never can tell.
8.Do not quit.
9.Do not fight too much with the umpires. You cannot expect them to be as perfect as you are.
10.A pitcher who hasn't control hasn't anything.
I figure there should be an Eleventh one, so I will add it:
11. Always wear a cup!
Have a good day. Adjust your cup. Pull on the bill of your hat. Spit in your glove, smack it few times with your fist and PLAY BALL!
3 comments:
The 10 commandments of baseball were not from Joe McCarthy...they were originally from Chief Bender
The Ten Commandments of Baseball have been credited to a few different people, but most sources site McCarthy as the author. According to author Alan H. Levy in Joe McCarthy, Architect of the Yankee Dynasty (McFarland & Company, 2005), the “10 Commandments of Baseball” was composed in 1921 by then player/manager Joe McCarthy of the Louisville Colonels minor league club. McCarthy went on to an illustrious managerial career in the Majors. According to a friend of mine, JD Thorne, and author of a book on McCarhty's Commandments that is not yet published, the Commandments were printed by the Boston Globe under McCarthy's name in 1949-- Thorne actually found the film image of the Globe piece and submitted it to the Baseball Hall of Fame. McCarthy's Commandments were printed by the thousand back when he originally composed them and in later years thus, there were probably many baseball people who referred them to players. McCarthy was a teaching manager and very concerned about instructing his players and the Commandments fit his style. One of McCarthy's players, Bill Zuber, who was a restaurant owner printed them up and distributed them at his restaurant in the Amana Colonies for many years.
JD's book, the 10 Commandments of Baseball will probably publish later this summer - it is short piece on the commandments, a little baseball history and JD's own amateur baseball stories. If interested, let me know and I will get your information once the printing is confirmed. lmj.norris@gmail.com
I just wanted to follow up on my June post. I published The 10 Commandments of Baseball by J. D. Thorne with my own new company called Sporting Chance Press (sportingchangepress.com). You can read about the book at my site. JD has created a program (speaking engagement) on the 10 Commandments and we are taking it "on the road." The book is 200 pages and has about 30 photos - many from the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Thanks for the opportunity to post here.
Post a Comment