Hognus Wagner, 1909, West Side Park
Generations have come of age enamored of the tales
of legendary athletes of bygone eras, speaking of them
in the same breath as they would a mythological figure
or a super hero. Through Kreindler���s eye, we are introduced to baseball players who bear legendary names.
We are transported to a moment when these historic
players achieved feats of athleticism and sportsmanship that made and/or broke records. He portrays them
in a manner more akin to the illustrative portraits found
on his father���s baseball cards rather than the hard-edged
commercial photography of today, or the high definition
television images by which we view baseball today.
Legendary Ty Cobb, who now exists only in printed text
and a few grainy photos, is rendered, through Kreindler���s
hands, in all his glory: his aggressive grimace as he spikes
his cleat into scrambling 3rd baseman, Jimmy Austin, illustrates how Cobb earned his reputation as baseball���s
most notorious anti-hero.
HYLAND
