Eliot Asinof's classic Man on Spikes (McGraw-Hill: 1955) is the minor league odyssey of outfielder Mike Kutner; his quest to get to the majors thwarted at every turn, despite his admirable play. His story is told by a series of different voices: by the people he meets and interacts with along the way. One of those people is Charlie Caulfield, a clown in flannels and stirrups. His life intersects with Kutners' while the two are playing outfield for the Houston Steers, a AA team in the fictional Chicago Lions farm system of the 1940s.
Caulfield started playing professional ball on a lark. As a college graduate he could have gone into business with a friend, but decided to play around for a few years with a local Class B team. His hitting was good enough to get him noticed by the AA Steers and, with a draft deferment - this was 1941 and Caulfield had a punctured eardrum - he had good timing. But he quickly discovered that being the "funny man" would help him stay with the team far longer than his skills.
Once, when hitting a ball back to the pitcher, he was so frustrated that instead of even trying to run to first base, he headed toward third base, instead. The pitcher and third basemen were so confused that they got Caulfield in a rundown between third and home until Caulfield finally sat down and laughed out loud. As Asinof put it: "he gave up even trying to be a real ball player; he was getting paid to be a freak."
Caulfield plays the fool to the story's leading character's professionalism. Charlie lives life for the moment and is seemingly rewarded for it. And, despite all his efforts, Kutner struggles to realize his goals. Caulfield points out that lightening up will help Mike's situation. That "people will like you more. It helps to be liked..." Friendship and being amicable are more valuable than sweating and working hard, and will help advance a person farther.
With the serious-minded, and naturally-skilled Kutner next to him in center field, though, Caulfield eventually finds himself reevaluating what he's become. In a telling moment in the locker room, Caulfield feels his insides churning, wanting not to have to go out and "perform" once again, but to fake an illness and take the night off. He sits on the bench next to Kutner feeling tired and old. His thoughts lead him to be absent-minded in his play, to the point of misplaying a fly ball and having Kutner admonish him for not "being in the game." In the 9th inning, however, Caulfield pulls himself together and redeems himself, through his own unique style, by scoring the winning run. His action and humor actually bring a smile to Mike Kutner's face, restoring Charlie's belief in himself.
Caulfield's outlook on life (not to mention his luck) prove to be prophetic. While sitting out a season serving his country in the Aleutian islands during the 1944 season, Kutner learns that his former teammate is playing centerfield for the St. Louis Cardinals. Listening to the radio broadcast of the World Series, Kutner hears how his former teammate misplays a flyball but adjusts to make a diving catch that saves the game.
Charlie Caulfield's role in Mike Kutner's story is limited to primarily his one featured chapter. But in addition to his appearance in the World Series, we are treated to a short aside that informs us that Caulfield eventually ends up as the third-string outfielder for the Lions. As this coincides to the end of Mike Kutner's career, we have to assume that it is also toward the end of Caulfield's, as well, since the two are roughly the same age.
Charlie Caulfield is one of the stronger supporting characters in Man on Spikes. His is a story that could stand on its own -- the story of the clown who made it to the Show.
John Baal, Rupert Mundys (The Great American Novel)
Aki, Bear Creek Grade school Ridgers (Bat 6)
Hal Bennett, Lions (Chance)
John Bunyan, Washington Senators (Sut McCaslin, A Baseball Romance)
Ray Burris, Cincinnati Reds (Home, Away)
Jumbo Hank Clerval, Highbridge Hellbenders (Brittle Innings)
Pat Corelli, New York Lions (The Last Great Season)
Donald "Hog" Durham, Arkansas Reds (The Dixie Association)
Jody Faust, St. Louis Browns (Fielder's Choice)
Luis "Gumbo" Garcia, Splendid Dominican Tourists (Brittle Innings)
Pete Jenkins, Krebs Miners (Miko Kings)
George Lloyd, Wichita Wraith (Babe Ruth Caught in a Snowstorm)
High McDowell, Centerville Owls (Season of the Owls)
Lucius Mummy, Miko Kings (Miko Kings)
Herb Score, Santa Rosa Stompers (Home, Away)
Norm Sudikoff, Highbridge Hellbenders (Brittle Innings)
Vitamin Vitarello, Washington Memorials (The Spring Habit)
E.T.A. Whitiker, (team unamed) (The Greatest Slump of All Time)
Wink, Barlow Road Grade School Pioneers (Bat 6)
Donus Youngs, All Stars, (The Bingo Long Travelling All-Stars & Motor Kings)
In The Greatest Slump of All Time (Harper & Row: 1984), David Carkeet presents a small ensemble cast of ten (nine players and their manager); the limited number to present a story about a baseball team. Roaming left field is Buford Ellenbogen, described by the author as "big, blond Buford". He's certainly the largest player on the team (one teammate admits he'd rather be hit by a train than have Ellenbogen run over him). Prior to becoming a professional baseball player his claim to fame was eating six consecutive entrees at his hometown Denny's. But Buford is a gentle giant; according to the team's center fielder, Eddie Johnson, Buford has "that gentle touch."
Buford is not the brightest bulb on the team, but he is full of good humor and "once or twice comes up with [a joke], himself." The team's manager believes that if he told Buford to "turn around backward in the batter's box and hang his ass over the plate, he'd do it." He is the type of person who wants to please; he tends to defer to the will of others, particularly his wife, who decided the two should get married and when, and that they should have children. He is genuinely surprised as things work out as they do, as if he had no preconceived idea as to what might or might not happen. Buford is seemingly pleased with his life. In fact, he is often seen sitting back feeling completely content to be a ballplayer.
Despite his good humor, and seemingly innocent outlook, Buford suffers from parental anxiety. He worries about the type of husband he will be, what kind of father he will become, and over how to protect his children. He decides at one point that his daughters will never be allowed in a baseball stadium where they might (both) be struck by the same line drive. Basketball games are out too (Buford images a seven foot center landing on his child and breaking her pelvis); going to football games could be bad, as well, as winter is full of snow storms and icy roads. (Indoor track? he wonders - no, the roof might cave in). Buford learns by trial and error. He overcomes his parental anxiety by practicing parenthood on a teammate's child (with mixed results), but in the end it is fatherhood that propels him to stardom. During the World Series, he hits a winning grand slam and throws out the potential winning run at the plate in extra innings all the while thinking of how he spent the previous night changing diapers.
In this small cast of characters, Buford Ellenbogen proves to be bigger than his physical build. Buford's character is not the lovable loser who initially appears in the story, but more the big dumb oaf who lumbers out to the plate and laughs at everyone's bad jokes. He's the overgrown kid, the innocent who in the end you discover is more adult than anyone else.
Audry, Barlow Road Grade School Pioneers (Bat 6)
Chuck Arnold, New York Lions (The Last Great Season)
Waxahachie Beckland, Splendid Dominican Tourists (Brittle Innings)
"Blockade" Billy Blakely, New Jersey Titans (Blockade Billy)
Bubba Broadax, Smackover High School (Fielder's Choice)
Joe Louis Brown, Graceville Oilers (Long Gone)
Joe Buck Cartwell, Arkansas Reds (The Dixie Association)
Tim Connell, Lions (Chance)
Chico Hernandez, Veracruz Blues (Veracruz Blues)
Dean Larson, Washington Memorials (The Spring Habit)
Boon Lions, Oxford Fury (The Dixie Association)
Bingo Long, All-Stars (The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings)
Phil Nagle, Boston Blues (Conduct of the Game)
Bruce Pearson, New York Mammoths (The Southpaw)
Hothead Ptah, Rupert Mundys (The Great American Novel)
Petashne, Wichita Wraith (Babe Ruth Caught in a Snowstorm)
"Turkey" Sloan, Highbridge Hellbenders (Brittle Innings)
Earl Smith, Chicago Blades (Conduct of the Game)
Matty Sternweiss, St. Louis Browns (Big League Dreams)
Tootie, Bear Creek Grade School Ridgers (Bat 6)
Hank West, Brooklyn Dodgers (World Series)
Rookie superstars are always compared to stars of previous generations. Carl Yastrzemski was to be the next Ted Williams - and that was understandable as he followed so closely with Williams' departure. Similarly, when Bobby Bonds was introduced as the newest Giants outfielder, he was touted as the next Willie Mays.
Ron Chapman is the rookie phenom of the New York Barons in John Hough, Jr.'s The Conduct of the Game (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt: 1986). Chapman actually plays a minor supporting role in the story, acting partly as antagonist to the novel's central character, umpire Lee Malcolm, as well as a representative of racism and bigotry during the book's 1960s setting. Actual prejudice, however, is never really displayed by anyone. Chapman relays his feelings of being biased against through his statements toward Malcolm. He feels that his race is the ultimate reason calls are made against him. When he is compared to Willie Mays by a sportswriter, he fires back - asking why he shouldn't be called the next Joe DiMaggio or Babe Ruth.
Chapman is fond of stating that his struggle through baseball has been akin to "picking cotton." But his record does not bear out the type of obstacles that one would associate with someone having to overcome racial bias. He is a graduate of UCLA, spent one year in both A and AAA ball before being promoted to the Majors. Hough portrays Chapman, though, as the stereotypical African American with a two-hundred year chip on his shoulder. Chapman is driven, and arrogant and seemingly in the hunt for a fight. But there seems to be a degree of conflict within Chapman in regards to racial inequality. In several instances - such as when called out in a close play, or tossed from a game, his response is one of "you can't do that", but when umpire Malcolm tries to settle tensions down by using Chapman's first name, Chapman's retort is one of "you don't know me" (as in "you don't know where I'm from or what I've had to endure").
Overall, because one of the underlying themes of the book revolves around prejudice, Chapman's character is never allowed to fully change in the main character's mind. But we do learn that Chapman has a different side - he helps disadvantaged youths, has been arrested during Civil Rights protests, and even becomes involved with a white woman. In a story centered around Ron Chapman I think we would see his character evolve to be more sympathetic. And that might mean that instead of playing with a scowl of distrust, Chapman would wear a smile (and display a love for the game) that would result in him being the next DiMaggio or Mantle or Robinson or, even Willie Mays.
Playing first base for the 1943 Highbridge (GA) Hellbenders in Michael Bishop's Brittle Innings (Bantam: 1994) is Henry "Jumbo" Clerval - a 7' soft-spoken, yet highly intelligent vegetarian pacifist. Oh, and he's also a monster - literally. According to Clerval own admission, he's the monster created by Victor Frankenstein and immortalized by Mary Shelly some 125 years earlier. Following his last-known appearance at the pole, he took the name of Frankenstein's best friend, and made his way to America where he determined that baseball was the best method for assimilating into society and learning to become human.
Clerval is a complex character, particularly because of his pieced-together origins. His features, apart from his exceptional height, resemble a set of slightly mismatched puzzle pieces put together: "His face was out of alignment somehow, like a pumpkin cut in two and put back together wrong." He is described as a "disjointed wreck" where shoulders, elbows, knees, and head jutted awkwardly and made it seem that he was one step away from unhinging and falling apart. Because of this, he found that children, women, and a few men were uncomfortable around him and would avoid his presence. Dogs also didn't like him, and there are numerous passages where his passing evokes(?) their barking. Despite his mixed "assembly", Clerval is actually a well-grounded individual. He's not entirely comfortable with his non-humanity, but he knows his limitations.
Henry Clerval is not the mute, grunting monster as portrayed by Boris Karloff, but rather the monster of Shelly's creation. He has a deep, articulate voice (not unlike the voice of actor Brad Garrett, IMO). His extensive vocabulary comes from reading "philosophy, science, religion, medicine, Victorian novels, and current
events."
As a player, Clerval is all arms and legs. Because of his lack of speed and agility, he plays a deep first base, standing on the grass behind the bag that able to snag ground balls that would otherwise get by him. Despite being slow and rather awkward, he is a presence at the plate and makes his hits count. He leads the league in home runs and eventually receives attention of the parent club for a late season call-up.
Clerval serves as a stabilizing influence, despite his eccentricities, for protagonist Daniel Boles. Boles is assigned as Henry's roommate and has his own demons he is battling. Henry, of course, has a number of secrets in addition to his origin that have Boles wondering about until Henry finally feels comfortable enough to start answering. Henry's experiences with the Hellbenders become intertwined
with that of Boles until a circumstances result in violence and tragedy. In the end, though, Clerval has impact and influence on Boles eventual reconciliation with his past, while Boles' loyalty and friendship help Henry move closer to realizing what he has longed to become: a real person.
Happy Halloween!
Looking for other possible Halloween baseball treats? Try one of the following:
Child's Play, by Sal Conte
Tartabull's Throw, by Henry Garfield
Southpaw, by Frank King
Blockade Billy or The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Stephen King
Sandy Koufax sat out a World Series game instead of working on Yom Kippur. He did, however pitch regularly on the Sabbath during the season. Matti Sternweiss, the central character in Allen Hoffman's Big League Dreams (Abbeville Press: 1997) does not have quite that level of religious conviction when we are introduced to him at the beginning of the novel. An immigrant from Poland, Matti - or "Sirdy" as he's known in the baseball world - has grown up with baseball and sees a clear separation between the two. He has always determined what he wanted to do and then gone and done it.
Big League Dreams is set in the summer of 1920, amid the swirling rumors and accusations of gambling and game-fixing over the previous Fall's World Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. Sternweiss is the starting catcher for the mediocre St. Louis Browns. We are reminded that players of that era worked basically as indentured servants to team owners; that it was the owners who raked in the profits and "didn't share." And for Matti, even though he has proven he is a good field manager (he is guiding two of his pitchers toward 20-game winning seasons), he knows that he will not reap any monetary rewards for his efforts. ("Who but [the manager] really knew how important Matti was to the club's success?")
Hoffman's Sternweiss, while professing no superstitions or adherence to religious rituals, is haunted by images of a recent mailplane crash in New Jersey. He is obsessed with images of the crushed fuselage, and envelopes of mail fluttering about in the empty field where the plane crashed. This is a recurring image in Matti's mind and Hoffman skillfully reveals it for what it is: a symbol of lost faith.
It's his loss of faith in his religion, but also in himself, and his fellow man, that moves Matti to consider involving himself in a gambling fix. He wants to earn enough money to marry his sweetheart (who was the nurse over his father's bedside when he died). He knows that his desire to someday be a manager will likely not happen (likely because he is Jewish). But a huge payoff could lead him to a better life.
Matti, though, must weigh the risks with the rewards: The risk of banishment from baseball versus the reward of marriage to the woman he loves. But when his plan is uncovered, he is taken before the leader of the small immigrant Jewish community from which Matti lives on the outskirts. Because many of the gamblers associated with the growing Black Sox scandal are Jews, if a Jewish player is discovered to have fixed a game it could result in a great backlash against the religion, as a whole. Will Matti pursue the monetary rewards, or be pointed in the right direction by the leader of his synagogue? He faces this decision as a game against Detroit and its star player, Ty Cobb, approaches.
Matti's story is a morality tale of temptation and redemption. Money and fame compete with and against each other. Matti knows he is a good player - and his efforts are noticed by the fans and press. Yet he knows his career is limited because of factors outside of his control. Matti eventually must decide whether his life's path is one he can control or rely on the faith he's seemingly lost to take him where he is destined.
William Brashler based this supporting character on Satchel Paige. Leon Carter is a 36-year old pitcher whose signature is his fastball. He's known for facing the leadoff hitter in a game with his fielders sit on the bench, or play cards behind the mound. He calls it his "invitation pitch". It was said that Satchel Paige was so confident in his pitching to have his fielders sit down while he faced a batter. And it's confidence that Carter possesses, as well. He is so consistent that he can throw his fastball over the plate multiple times without forcing the catcher to move his glove.
In The Bingo Long Travelling All-Stars and Motor Kings, Brashler's version of Paige has been pitching for the Louisville Ebony Aces for 13 years, and is touted as the "greatest fastball pitcher in the world." When asked by Bingo Long to be the featured player in his barnstorming team, we find that Carter is initially reluctant. He's content with his current situation. In fact, he's the highest paid player on the Aces, and has one of the larger houses in Louisville where he's settled in with his wife and kids. But every man has his price, and Long soon convinces Carter to join the team, for a guaranteed amount of money that's more than he's receiving from the Ace's owner.
Brashler doesn't dole out too much detail about Leon Carter's personal life. We learn he's a well-renowned veteran ballplayer, has been throwing a baseball for 25 years and has kids and a wife in Louisville. We can deduce that because he's one of the older players in the Negro Leagues, his motivation is more about getting as much money as possible out of his remaining playing days. But, I think, we can also determine that he's loyal to his friends. Otherwise, he could easily have negotiated a higher rate of pay from the Ace's owner once the rest of the team had left. Perhaps it was one more chance to be on the open road, on the barnstorming circuit; and a chance to mentor a few more young players, that really motivated Carter to join the All-Stars.
Being a long-time veteran of Negro League ball, barnstorming, and segregation-era society, his role is the father-figure on the team, and the voice of reason. Eventually, Bingo Long makes him the assistant promoter (his "Business Man") for the team. This role is, in fact, more like Long's conscience. When decisions are to be made, Long promises to go to Carter first for an opinion, but only if Leon keeps these thoughts between himself and Bingo. The riskier the decisions, the more Bingo leans on Carter. But he also uses Leon as a prop for making the un-popular choices, such as deciding to play as many small venues as possible, instead of relying only on larger payoffs in bigger stadiums (which would mean more rest for the team).
Bingo Long and Leon Carter are the classic "heart versus head". Bingo wants to go with his gut, most of the time, while Leon is more pragmatic. When players start to get hurt and can't play, Carter tells Long to send them home. "A traveling team's got to be light or it's not a travelling team no more." He advocates keeping the team "tired" in order to keep them motivated. Carter's character is necessary stable force in this story to counter the rashness that the other characters possess.
Eliot Asinof's classic Man on Spikes (McGraw-Hill: 1955) is the minor league odyssey of outfielder Mike Kutner; his quest to get to the majors thwarted at every turn, despite his admirable play. His story is told by a series of different voices: by the people he meets and interacts with along the way. One of those people is Charlie Caulfield, a clown in flannels and stirrups. His life intersects with Kutners' while the two are playing outfield for the Houston Steers, a AA team in the fictional Chicago Lions farm system of the 1940s. 
