When Paul Simon and Art Garfunkle opined, Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, our nation turns its lonely eyes to you, they were referring to an era in our history, which to them represented a purer and more simplistic approach to life. From the time the famed Yankee Clipper was born until he hung up his spikes in 1951 the world had lived through two world wars and witnessed the commencement of the Korean Conflict. Simplicity isn’t synonymous with idyllic but it does imply a style of living which is unvarnished and not tainted with shallow superficiality, which is intended to deceive more than to reveal. DiMaggio’s world was full of complexity and hardship; good times are mostly the memories we weave into a more accessible tapestry to sustain us in difficulty, to grant us a safe haven for introspection, and, all too often, to provide us an excuse to escape; however, I harbor no escapist sentiments by invoking those lyrics from Mrs. Robinson when I survey the current state of baseball and specifically the aspects of Barry Bonds’ career, as he nears the milestone set by the great Henry Aaron, which cast a pall over our national past time. DiMaggio once said, There is always some kid who may be seeing me for the first or last time, I owe him my best. Unfortunately, Barry Bonds interpreted that kind of commitment to include any means at his disposal, including drugs.
What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson.
Jotting Joe has left and gone away,
Hey hey hey.
Indeed he has!
