Sport: Big Joe

It was the fifth inning; the Boston Red Sox were playing the New York Yankees. Bronx thermometers registered 94° in the shade. But the crowd was oblivious of the sweltering heat. They sat on the edges of their sticky seats, gripping their sticky score cards. Strapping Joe Di Maggio, Yankee slugger nonpareil, was at bat, and something more than a ball game was at stake.

The first pitch was bad. So was the second. Joe walloped the next one but it landed just outside the foul line. The crowd moaned. Joe got set again....

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