Compare and Contrast

I just got off of baseball-reference.com after looking at the Met teams, 1962-68. Good news is, the White Sox aren’t that bad, at least not yet. They beat the Royals last night 6-4, their fifty-fourth win of the season. Heck, it took the Mets five years to win that many games in a season. And yet— If only these Sox were as lovable as those Mets. I can remember being a kid and watching “What’s My Line” on a Sunday night in May, 1964. I was probably on top of the world, given that the Sox had just swept a doubleheader at Tiger Stadium, which was sort of like taking two on a Sunday in the Bronx, Cash and Kaline substituting for Mantle and Maris. That’s not what I remember, though. What I remember is watching “What’s My Line?” that Sunday night and hearing the urbane Bennett Cerf mention how Chris Cannizzaro of the Mets had caught all twenty-three innings of a game his team lost to the Giants, 8-6. Contrary to what the song says about making it there, New York on occasion will love a loser, provided he or she qualifies somehow as one of its own. Who loves a loves a losing White Sox team? New York, from the Times on down, can barely locate Chicago on a map, let alone name its American League team. The Chicago media? Not with the Bears ready to kick off their season three days from now. Jerry Reinsdorf? Surely, you jest. So, on a night Andrew Vaughn collects three hits and Touki Toussaint picks up a win, I remember other times, other teams, even, and hope that next years brings reason to cheer. But I won’t hold my breath.