Back then, ‘work stoppage’ belonged to the patois of the factory, not the baseball diamond.
It had not yet become the lingua franca that mediates between the players’ ‘strike’ and the owners’ ‘lockout’. You played baseball for fun and for as long as you could, and you assumed everyone else who could did the same. The idea of deciding not to play baseball had not occurred to us, perhaps like the concept ‘Interstate Highway’ before the invention of the wheel. If picketing at the plant meant some kids ate tuna fish for two weeks straight, at least you could comfort yourself with the Phillies’ box score in the morning paper. If they had beat up on the Mets, labor disputes or a dad’s missed paycheck seemed a slightly irritating footnote. Continue Reading »
Canter Bridge 