TOO MANY FOULS – NOT ENOUGH FLYS

I loved catching fly balls with my glove. Trouble was there never were too many kids around when I did get a chance to do so. My only ball-throwing companion was my cousin Jimmy Kana, who was about two years younger than me. He was a pretty stout youngster and could really hit long fly balls. We had a problem because whenever he did try to hit fly balls for me to catch, he hit more foul tips and ground balls than fly balls. I spent more time chasing these errant hits than I did actually catching fly balls. I figured I could grow old waiting for a good one to catch. Therefore, I put my ever-expanding brain to use and came up with an ingenious gadget that would guarantee a great fly ball every time.

Let me divulge my ingenious invention! I merely took a 3-foot oak 2x4 and nailed three mayonnaise jar lids in a row on one end of it. Then I cut a 6-inch thick round fence post to about a 3-foot length and nailed the 2x4 across the middle of the fence post to form a seesaw effect. Then I retrieved an 8-pound sledgehammer with a 3-foot handle from my Dad’s shop. I gave my cousin the sledgehammer in place of the bat. After putting the ball onto one of the lids all he had to do was hit the other end of the 2 X 4 with the hammer and, wa-la, up flew a beautiful fly ball!

By placing the ball into the different lids, one could control the height and angle of the ball so it would land in a different place every time and every hit by that sledgehammer would guarantee a nice catchable fly ball!

I guess I could have patented my invention and be rich by now but I was just content to have a gadget I had made to be enjoyed by me.