I met him once,
this prince with verbal way of Maliprop,
fooling prophet
to doubt non-brilliance,
covering the Giants in '87,
as aging coach for Houston's Astros,
his legend leaking line in oxymoron
of folklore lit in livid lap
to lead in laugh of happenstance,
as lost horizon,
in angle arching toward unusual,
his systemic song
of classic cliché
destroyed to delay
and change to subject,
as simple played to clever nonchalance,
growing large in cartoon's face, complex,
embellished as higher plane
of mutant misunderstanding,
promoting myth,
as not so boring.
Only half the lies are true,
as story carved to order pizza,
when waitress asked him how to slice it,
"six or eight triangled pieces",
Yogi answered, "make it six,
as I don't think
that I could eat eight",
all said so,
as god in truth
rumbling quip to quote forever.
The other half,
those lies not ripe,
are still in garden,
saturating earth to mutant smiles
in mind of writer seeking profile,
looking for a freshened slant
for what is show in self-promotion,
as something wired in comic impotence,
when soul is awed
to be with fiction,
as bigger screen in motion picture,
and athlete in rounder body,
than Greek did sculpt
to run with torch.
Author notes
I met Yogi as a sportswriter...the picture above is the article I wrote upon meeting him (I also took the photo), Sept. 16, 1987.
Such and amazing run of bigger than life quotes, make him unique in his field...
like the legend of "Peteskid" raising his pennant on this site...who knows what he might acheive with such incredible talent.
And to have this quote on his author's page...
"only half the lies they tell about me are true"...
makes so much sense to me.
Such are legends.
In a list
A contest entry
- For Peteskid - Another Favorites' Contest by CarolDesjarlais.
700 points, ended May 26, 2007, 5 entries
Bronze trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
1 - 9 of 9
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Oh, yup, he did...lol..I just read his note...
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Oh peteskid will love this..it a man's poem...hee hee..it is speakigng way beyond this, though...it speaks to possibilities...and all you need to do is say the name and those of that time know exactly of whom you write....I wanna be around when someone says "Peteskid" and we all know exactly who that is...Good job!
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"When you come to a fork in the road...take it." sez he. 
A grand & eloquent penning, my Friend...Good luck in Carol's contest, Sweetie...
Wanda
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Oh my goodness,
Half of this poetry business is ninety percent mental... Yogi replaced Winston Churchill as the most quoted fellow in the western world; he is amazing, and he really was a great athlete too, one of the great winners of all time... Thank you so much for these wonderful personal insights into one of my favorite characters...It is so much appreciated...PK
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I did so enjoy the quote you used in this, it brought a smile, for the football players I deal with in one of my jobs would say something so serious yet make us smile. You are so lucky to have met a legend who had no need of angels in the outfield. PK will love it. Love, C
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wonderful write to give in share of such memory of special. really enjoyed this one.
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what an amazing story!
It mmust have been wonderful meeting him...
Your poem brings out the personality of this legend!
Beautifully done, my friend...
Lynda
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"six or eight triangled pieces",
Yogi answered, "make it six,
as I don't think
that I could eat eight",
This is great, I like your baseball poems,
an interesting and unique tribute poem!
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Excellent,
So very insightful, and the content about this man you weave a dedication for speaks well of who he was and sets the stage for memories to remain forevermore. Thanks for sharing, it must of been nice to meet, and then do a follow up piece about him. Way cool. Keep up the great works, you're an inspiration with each piece I read. Congrates, and all the best in this contest my friend. Much peace, love, and respect, your friend, and fan, Timothy aka poeticweaver~
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