Walter P Smith

Baseball, Golf and Growing up Sports Walter P Smith

Baseball, golf and growing up sports are a common theme in each of the eight short stories that follow in this eponymously named collection. Several of the stories are memoirs, The Ball, The Errant Drive, The First Tee and Nothing but Net, written exactly as these tales unfolded, some more than fifty years ago. In The Tiger's Win, names and places have been changed, and a few details regarding how the games actually played out might have been filled in, helping in cases where my memory failed. Otherwise the story is pretty much spot on. The Coach's Pants, Divots, and The Gimme, are far more real than fiction, and were inspired by events my son (Jarrod aka Garret) or myself actually experienced. While sports take the center stage, equally important is the nature of the Father-Son bond, evident throughout this collection. Some of the stories address important social issues concerning youth sports and the games of the elite. Biases faced and challenges overcome because of adolescent obesity or coming from the wrong part of town are essential elements in several stories. If you play or have played sports, if you love or hate sports, if you were the first pick, the last pick, or not picked at all for any schoolyard game, or if you are a Dad or a Son (or Mom or Daughter) you might enjoy some or all of these short tales.