Gil Thorp by Henry Barajas and Rachel Merrill for June 03, 2022

Oh my aching head. (Granted, this is the kind of cementheaded notion kids come up with.) All right, I accept that with our public schools being shooting galleries, a lot of grownups are obviously pretty comfortable with the notion of kids getting snuffed. But what the hell are R&W thinking here??? Sure, let’s have a blind guy throwing heat five feet behind the batters’ heads. In HIGH SCHOOL.

Annie Sullivan?

Considering Ryne Duren last pitched 57 years ago, it’s unlikely that the girl has any idea who he was (unless she’s secretly 80 years old).

He’s dead, he can’t tutor Gregg.

Besides being an “aspereen chucker” and known for his thick glasses, Ryne Duren did have a drinking problem (which he conquered.) So…where we headed here? I DO like the old school reference, though.

In all reality , first batter first pitch you hit him right in the head with your fast ball. Next batter same thing ,next batter first pitch into the press box and nail Marty Moon, next batter unleash your fastball and hit the on deck hitter . Nobody will want to bat against you Gregg , Milford wins by forfeit.

P4 Charissss: “Why are you looking at me like that Gregggg? As if you can see anyway. Hey, it’s either play yappy chihuahua baseball trivia games with this loser or let him run my base paths…

Scooooter takes a lesson from Charissss and loses the “!” tee shirt and changes into a collared shirt on the way to City Park

P4:Greggggg: “Ryne Duren? Didn’t he have a drinking problem?”Scooterrrrr: [hands Greggggg a bottle] “He sure did!”

At first I thought I was reading Mark Trail with the wildlife flying around.

Commentary by Ty Webb. Ryne Duran? Regrettably not available. Sonja Henie’s out. We’ll take Danny Noonan. Darn it, he’s in the lumberyard. On the advice of my college teammate Mitch, Rick Vaughn might be available to show Gregg the finer points of pitching.

I didn’t know who Ryne Duren was, and before looking him up I guessed that he was yet another player who presented a risk to maim or kill opposing players. Sure enough, yep. I’m getting really sick of these kids “cleverly” trying to use threats of severe injury as a way to keep their opponents from playing competitive and fair baseball.

I just knew Ryne Duren’s name would come up

Oh no, they’re going to drag this storyline on for at least another week!

Rye n’ double is Marty’s solution.

P 4: “….hey Charis!….Shut. Up. ……”

Oh, that Ryan, not Granny Clampet

P4: Solution: take up Golf.

And we eventually learn that the reason Mr. Hammm is on the lammm is that 30 years ago he killed an opposing batter with a beanball. Greggg is just a slice off the old Hammm.

At least Town Park is deserted. No one will hear them hatching this plot.

Giant wing drawing in P1

No reason at all that she shouldn’t know about Ryne Duren. After all, the baseball trivia is flying around her all the time. Besides, Ryne Duren was legendary (in a few senses of the word).

The coke bottle glasses and drilling the mascot will keep opposing batters from digging in, but they should still be able to bunt Gregggg out of the game. Maybe the plot would pick up if Cody Exner (Milford High/Valley Modified ’11) popped out of the bushes to sell them some weed!

Ryne Duren had to bat in the day. Is she suggesting Greg bats??

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryne_Duren“Duren was the inspiration for the character Ricky “Wild Thing” Vaughn in the movie Major League, according to its author and director David S. Ward"

No one has mentioned Hoo lately.

https://twitter.com/DD_Classics/status/1532582125244923904/photo/3

Wow, is Scooooter really that short? Gregggg is not likely taller than 6’. Which would mean based on P1, Scooooter can’t be over 5’ as he must be more than a foot shorter. Heck, his girlfriend has a half foot over him too. And speaking of over, your wait for today’s Mopped Up Thorp is now over.

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