| 1961 - A Baseball Game At Five Points I'll Never Forget Written by Joel Bailey |
This baseball came started out as another
typical game for us boys in the summer that
lived around Five Points. The weather was hot
and muggy, as usual in the summertime. We had
gathered all the guys around from Prison Camp
Rd, old Ellerbe Rd, Pee Dee, the Charlotte
Highway(old 74), Snead Ave and Five Points.
Now, I might leave some names out but a few
of them were: Randy Jarrell, Mike and Billy
McKenzie, Jimmy Lassiter, Sonny Swails, John
and Harold Webb, Mike Key (I think), Billy
Maples, Olin Maples, Allan Snead, Randy Snead,
Ricky McNeely, my brothers, Gary and Randy,
and probably more that I cannot remember.
We gathered at the field at Five Points - it was
located behind old Lefty's Place - where the
Lassiters now have all the antiques, etc. located.
At that time, it was a nice, big empty field -
perfect for playing baseball. While I'm talking
about baseball fields, we had two more that we
used. One was located in Pee Dee across from
the old Great Falls school - right above Johns
Pool Hall. The other one was off Snead Ave.
Anyway, when we played baseball, I usually got
one of the worst field positions, namely, right
field. I was a skinny kid and wasn't known as
being a great baseball player, so I usually played
right field since most of the balls were hit
elsewhere.
Well, as we started this particular game, I took
the right field position, thinking I wouldn't get
much action, as usual. If I'm not mistaken,
Sonny Swails, the well known left handed
pitcher, came up to bat. As he took his swing, he
belted it high and to right field. I started
running! I was determined to catch that fly ball
and get the great Sonny Swails out! I got under
the ball and had my glove and hand up to catch
that pop fly! The only problem was, I had my
right hand inside the glove ready to clasp it shut
when the ball hit. But - my hand was a little too
close! When the ball hit the glove, I dropped it! I
saw the ball on the ground and kept trying to
pick it up but it just kept falling out of my hand.
I couldn't hold onto it! Then, I saw blood all over
my hand! The ball had dropped right between
my little finger and ring finger instead of into my
glove! No wonder I couldn't pick the ball up! -
my little finger was barely hanging on! The ball
had landed between the two fingers and just
about tore the little finger off!
Needless to say, I was frightened to death when
I realized what had happened. Some of the guys
helped me wrap my hand and took me home.
Dad rushed me to the hospital and they saved my
little finger. I had stitches and to this day, the
scar is still there - as a rememberance of the
baseball game I'll never forget!
typical game for us boys in the summer that
lived around Five Points. The weather was hot
and muggy, as usual in the summertime. We had
gathered all the guys around from Prison Camp
Rd, old Ellerbe Rd, Pee Dee, the Charlotte
Highway(old 74), Snead Ave and Five Points.
Now, I might leave some names out but a few
of them were: Randy Jarrell, Mike and Billy
McKenzie, Jimmy Lassiter, Sonny Swails, John
and Harold Webb, Mike Key (I think), Billy
Maples, Olin Maples, Allan Snead, Randy Snead,
Ricky McNeely, my brothers, Gary and Randy,
and probably more that I cannot remember.
We gathered at the field at Five Points - it was
located behind old Lefty's Place - where the
Lassiters now have all the antiques, etc. located.
At that time, it was a nice, big empty field -
perfect for playing baseball. While I'm talking
about baseball fields, we had two more that we
used. One was located in Pee Dee across from
the old Great Falls school - right above Johns
Pool Hall. The other one was off Snead Ave.
Anyway, when we played baseball, I usually got
one of the worst field positions, namely, right
field. I was a skinny kid and wasn't known as
being a great baseball player, so I usually played
right field since most of the balls were hit
elsewhere.
Well, as we started this particular game, I took
the right field position, thinking I wouldn't get
much action, as usual. If I'm not mistaken,
Sonny Swails, the well known left handed
pitcher, came up to bat. As he took his swing, he
belted it high and to right field. I started
running! I was determined to catch that fly ball
and get the great Sonny Swails out! I got under
the ball and had my glove and hand up to catch
that pop fly! The only problem was, I had my
right hand inside the glove ready to clasp it shut
when the ball hit. But - my hand was a little too
close! When the ball hit the glove, I dropped it! I
saw the ball on the ground and kept trying to
pick it up but it just kept falling out of my hand.
I couldn't hold onto it! Then, I saw blood all over
my hand! The ball had dropped right between
my little finger and ring finger instead of into my
glove! No wonder I couldn't pick the ball up! -
my little finger was barely hanging on! The ball
had landed between the two fingers and just
about tore the little finger off!
Needless to say, I was frightened to death when
I realized what had happened. Some of the guys
helped me wrap my hand and took me home.
Dad rushed me to the hospital and they saved my
little finger. I had stitches and to this day, the
scar is still there - as a rememberance of the
baseball game I'll never forget!
| So, as the Train of Life keeps chugging along, another page written of my Childhood Memories of.... Rockingham Remembered. |
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