Ever seen this Nike poster?... and other random thoughts..

[Wrigley2010]

I came across this poster while perusing eBay and wanted to share it. This may be a well known piece but it is unknown to me. It depicts Dale Murphy and Dwight Gooden playing stickball in an alley somewhere in the heart of New York City. I have to say it is one the coolest 80's era pieces of baseball art I have ever seen. If you consider it art that is.

A little off topic here but I actually saw two kids playing baseball on the sidewalk while I was on my way to work the other day. The scene looked like a real life version of this poster. One was pitching and the other was batting. No outfielders, just a good old fashioned duel between batter and pitcher . They stopped every time a car drove by to be sure no damage was done. It took all of my will-power not to stop and make myself late for work all so I could even things up by playing the outfield.

Seeing this brought back a lot of fond memories of my childhood. I'm talking a time frame of the late 80's till the early 90's. The reason I share this is because I haven't seen kids playing baseball outside of organized ball in more years than I can remember. It's sad to see America's past-time become well for lack of a better phrase, a thing of the past.

With that being said, I know football participation is decreasing every year and honestly I think that's a good thing. It shows parents and kids are educating themselves on the risks and a lot are deciding it is just not worth it. Don't get me wrong I love football but I think we have learned so much about the adverse health effects it can have on you both while playing the game and later in life. I bring this point up because football is now clearly "America's Game." I wonder if we will see a day where this no longer holds true? Maybe basketball, hockey or even the archaic game of baseball will stand tall as America's Game once again.

Sorry for the digression. Sometimes I let my thoughts flow in all directions. I should probably delete this ridiculous, meandering and mostly pointless post but instead I'll leave it for your entertainment. Oh and let's not forget the members who live to "flame" threads... you should have fun with this one.

Anyways, if you're still here the link to the eBay auction is below, lol.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nike-Stickba...item3d004ab5d6

[Samets]

Love DUMBO!

[admin_old]

You couldn't squeeze in 1 inning? Thanks for sharing.

[Juicyfruit66]

I was born in 78 and used to play baseball at the park down the street in Montreal with other kids, we wouldn't have enough for full compliment so adjusted the rules a bit to make it work. We also used a tennis ball to avoid damage (park had a softball field and we'd damage cars with a baseball). We used to play til the sun started to set. Now kids play video games alone with headsets. Sad.

[mdube16]

I had this and the Jordan Jumpman poster haging in my room growing up. Thanks for sharing!!

[helf35]

That's an awesome poster. Wish they would do a modern day version. I remember playing with just one side of the infield and outfield almost like putting on a shift with a power hitter. We used 3/4 lines at first and home and used the pitcher as the first basemen/catcher. You make it passed before you get it to the pitcher your safe if you don't your out.