The Boys of Summer

One of my regular readers was confused by a comment I made on changing seats in a poker game. She thought in order for me to change to a better seat, somebody else would have to change his or her seat.

While I can see the confusion in a person who doesn't play poker in a casino setting, it doesn't work that way. In order to make a seat change, you notify the dealer of your desire. As soon as a player leaves the game, you have the option of taking that seat. If you aren't happy there, no problem. You simply wait for another seat to be vacated. Thanks for the question, Jade. And, yes, if I take that cruise, I will certainly share my adventures with my readers.

As a native of Pittsburgh, PA., I have been a longtime fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates. I played baseball in high school and college and like hundreds of other young men in Western Pennsylvania, tried out for the Pirates.

The odds were long against me -- over 500 players showed up for the tryout -- and I wasn't accepted. When the Pirates won the 1960 World Series against the New York Yankees, I was a teenage correspondent for a dinky little weekly newspaper called the Irwin Times-Observer.

My cigar-smoking publisher was Abe Better, whose spectacles and big round eyes made him look like a wise owl. He had a warm spot in his heart for young aspiring writers who didn't want to follow their fathers into the coal mines and steel mills.

One morning he called me into his office and gave me a choice assignment. Bill Mazeroski, the young second baseman for the Pirates who hit the grand-slam homerun that won game seven of the World Series, was getting married. His bride-to-be was a cute blond from Swissville, PA.

Abe handed me a gold ticket that would gain me entrance to the Jacktown Hotel in Irwin where the wedding reception would be held. I was starstruck.

'You mean,' I stuttered, gasping for air, 'that I'm going to meet Bill Mazeroski?'

Abe re-lit his cigar. 'You'll meet all of them. Maz, Danny Murtaugh, Dick Groat, Roberto Clemente, Frank Thomas, the works. Just get me some great pictures of Mazeroski and his new wife and some good quotes for a story. It'll be our page one lead.'

That was a long time ago. I got the story for Abe and went on to bigger things like working for the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner where I covered the Manson murder trial, a major earthquake, forest fires, the Black Panthers, school riots, the Santa Barbara oil slick, the return of the USS Pueblo crew from a North Korean prison camp, murders, Audie Murphy and a governor named Ronald Reagan.

I followed the Pirates over the years but time and distance made me lose track of the players. For the past several months, I have been living in Phoenix with my daughter and grandchildren. Naturally I have become a fan of the Arizona Diamondbacks, a young team with a lot of talent and a need for another starting pitcher.

Okay, you say. This is supposed to be a gambling column. So why is he writing about baseball and the Diamondbacks?

A month ago, I was in Las Vegas to play in a poker tournament at the Golden Nugget. I went by the sports bar and was stunned to see the Nugget was offering 400 to one odds against the Diamondbacks winning the World Series.

I handed the cashier a $20 bill and he gave me back a ticket that is worth $8,000 if the miracle happens.

Sports betting can come from the emotions, inside tips and real knowledge of the physical condition of the players and any plans for future trades.

I realize most people will call me dumb from betting on the Diamondbacks. But those people never saw the 1960 World Series. They never shook the big calloused hand of Bill Mazeroski, kissed his bride, shook hands with Roberto Clemente and exchanged hugs with an Irishman named Danny Murtaugh, or shook hands with a home-run hitting outfielder named Frank Thomas.

It's a long shot, but I love my chances. Why don't you consider making a futures bet on your favorite major league or NFL team? Don't pay any attention to the odds. Just have fun with a bet and, like me, you will say, 'Let the games begin.'

Author: Geno Lawrenzi Jr.

(Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is an international journalist, magazine author and ghostwriter. If you have a unique gambling story to share with him, you may qualify for a cash award. Send your story with all the details to glawrenzi@gmail.com ).