These Songs Deserve A "Diamond" Quiz

Answer: "Casey at the Bat" by Ernest Thayer

John Forgerty's love of baseball and some famous figures from the sport inspired him to create the 1985 song "Centerfield". Part of the lyrics are "Well, I spent some time in the Mudville Nine/Watching it from the bench/You know I took some lumps/When the Mighty Casey struck out". This is a direct reference to the poem "Casey at the Bat".

For live performances of the song, John Fogerty sometimes played a custom electric guitar shaped exactly like a baseball bat. Crafted by Philip Kubicki, the instrument is modeled after an iconic Louisville Slugger bat.

Answer: Number of home runs

The title refers to when Hank Aaron hit his 715th career home run on April 8, 1974 to break Babe Ruth's record of 714.

Rather than just celebrating a statistical milestone, Peter Cooper frames Aaron's achievement against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement and the political situation in the South. The song contrasts Aaron's quiet grace with the harsh reality of the hate mail and death threats he received simply for being a Black man threatening a white icon's record. Cooper highlights how Aaron spoke "with a bat and not his mouth", using his remarkable wrist strength and focus to rise above hatred.

Answer: Alabama

"The Cheap Seats" is an upbeat 1994 single by the country music group Alabama, written by Marcus Hummon and Randy Sharp. It was the title track to their 1993 album, and became one of the most recognizable minor league baseball anthems in country music.

Set in a town that "ain't big, this town ain't small", the song captures the experience of fans sitting up high in the nosebleed section (right below the outfield billboards), drinking beer, doing single-person stadium waves, and cheering on the players who are playing for the love of the game rather than multi-million dollar contracts.

Answer: Glory Days

The song "Glory Days" was inspired by a real encounter. In the summer of 1973, Springsteen unexpectedly ran into his former Little League teammate, Joe DePugh, at a bar called the Parkway Lounge in New Jersey. The two had played baseball together in 1962, and their brief conversation about their childhood games sparked the premise for the song a decade later.

The narrative follows a man who bumps into old acquaintances from his youth including the teammate. "I had a friend was a big baseball player/Back in high school/He could throw that speedball by you/Make you look like a fool, boy". Springsteen uses this vignette to examine how easy it is to become trapped in memories of early success, mistaking high school peaks for the best life has to offer.

Answer: Outfield

In late 1980, Cashman was gifted a photo taken from behind four legendary outfielders - Willie Mays (#24), Mickey Mantle (#7), Duke Snider (#4), and Joe DiMaggio (#5)-walking onto the field at Shea Stadium. Cashman set out to write a song about the picture. Recognizing that DiMaggio belonged to an earlier era, he focused on the other three iconic center fielders who played in New York City.

Released during the 1981 MLB players' strike, the song offered fans comfort and nostalgia when no live baseball was being played. It highlights things like the rivalry among New York's three teams and references legendary figures like Yogi Berra, Hank Aaron, Ted Williams ("The Thumper"), and Roy Campanella. It also mentions stars at the time the song was written, including George Brett, Pete Rose, Mike Schmidt, and Nolan Ryan.

Answer: True

The song "Night Game" is from Paul Simon's 1975 album "Still Crazy After All These Years". Unlike upbeat baseball anthems that celebrate the joy of the game, Simon uses the sport to construct a tragedy. As the lyrics state, "There were two men on and two men out/And the game was on the line/When the pitcher died/He just collapsed and died".

The story shifts from the initial shock on the field (the "white ball" rolling away into the grass) to the quiet aftermath of the stadium emptying, the tarp being rolled over the infield, and the lingering shadow of sudden mortality.

Answer: Chicago Cubs

The song even starts off talking about Vedder's beloved Cubs. The lyrics state "When you're born in Chicago you are blessed and you're healed/The first time you walk into Wrigley Field." The song was born directly from baseball royalty. In 2007, legendary Hall of Famer Ernie Banks ("Mr. Cub") personally asked Vedder to write a song for the team. So he did.

For over a century, supporting the Cubs was defined by heartbreak and waiting for "next year". Vedder captures the unwavering loyalty of the fans, the magic of Wrigley Field, and the hopeful conviction that one day the team would break its 100-plus-year championship drought.

Answer: Jackie Robinson

The 1949 jump blues single was celebrated as one of the earliest musical tributes to a Black sports icon. The upbeat track captures the sheer pride and excitement surrounding Jackie Robinson breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947.

While Robinson is the star of the track, Johnson uses the lyrics to spotlight several other early Black trailblazers in the Major Leagues. Satchel Paige was the legendary Negro Leagues pitcher who debuted in the Majors at age 42 for the Cleveland Indians. Larry Doby was the first Black player in the American League, who integrated the Cleveland Indians shortly after Robinson joined the Dodgers.
Roy Campanella was Robinson's powerhouse teammate and fellow Hall of Fame catcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Answer: Kenny Rogers

Released on Kenny Roger's album "She Rides Wild Horses", the song is a heartwarming story about childhood optimism and baseball. The narrative follows a young boy walking into his backyard wearing a baseball cap and carrying a ball and bat. Determined to prove himself, he proclaims aloud, "I'm the greatest hitter of them all".

After the boy strikes out, however, the charm of the song rests on its clever punchline. Instead of hanging his head in defeat, the boy smiles broadly and exclaims: "I'm the greatest pitcher of them all!"

Answer: 7th inning stretch

Written in 1908 by lyricist Jack Norworth and composer Albert Von Tilzer, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is the unofficial anthem of North American baseball and frequently ranks third behind "Happy Birthday" and "The Star-Spangled Banner" among the most frequently sung songs in the United States.

The tradition of singing the chorus during the 7th-inning stretch took root across ballparks over several decades, but it was solidified into a national pop culture phenomenon by legendary broadcaster Harry Caray. Beginning with the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park and later continuing with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Caray would lean out of the broadcast booth with a microphone and lead the entire stadium in a joyful, off-key sing-along - a tradition that ballparks still do today.