Once Upon a Time, on the Saturday night prior to Memorial Day, a brave little grackle named Rallybird decided to have dinner in downtown Houston. The spunky small bird was fearless. Naturally, with the roof open at Minute Maid Park, the creepy, crawly delicacies of a big league game active infield quickly became Ral’s first pick as the best place he could go to peck away the night.
It didn’t take long for Rallybird to both assert his casual “don’t bother me none” attitude as he calmly strolled under the arch of 90 MPH pitches and 105 MPH batted balls as he also dined on the nourishment he pulled dragging from the lush green grass. And, as the Astros scored a cushion run to pad their lead to 5-2, shouts of “Go Rallybird” seemed even to have emboldened the little guy to expose more of his own fan bias for the Astros over the Orioles. – We all could see the risk that Ral was taking. – One hard body slam from a a batted or pitched ball and it was going to be “Bye Bye Birdie” on the spot.
Rallybird turned out to be an Astros on-the-field bench jockey: “Hey! Orioles pitcher! Are you any kin to that soccer ball in the old Tom Hanks plane crash survivor movie? …. “Hey! Orioles pitcher! Do you ever feel like you’re losing control of the ball just as you get to the release point?”
“Hey, Dumbo Bird! – I’m going to throw my chewing gum at you! VAMANOS!” …. That’s what Orioles infielder Manny Machado (right) seems to have been saying as he actually did throw his chewing gum at Rallybird. (Rallybird never flinched. After briefly glancing at Machado, Ral simply went back to checking out the grass near 3rd base.
Rallybird Responds to Manny Machado’s gum toss with a serious question: “Does this mean that you’d like a little grackle mayonnaise shipment delivered to both your driver’s side windshield and your car’s front door handle as soon as you get back to Baltimore? I have friends back east that can make that happen anytime I give them the word.”
Follow the arrow and you will see the feint figure 0f Rallybird. He’s now coaching 3rd base for the Astros after the Machado gum and grackle mayo stand-down.
Because of his diminutive size, 3rd base coach Rallybird at one point had to move into an usual position just to make sure his “increase your lead” sign was picked up by 2nd base runner, Jose Altuve. Altuve later smiled about the sign he was given: “I thought the pointed bird step and beak toward 3rd base was pretty crafty stuff. If he had put his head down and left the foot still extended toward 3rd, that would have been the green light signal to go for it.”
By the time the game ended in another joyous victory for the exciting 2017 Houston Astros, little Rallybird was long gone from the scene – without a parting ovation for his proud and sturdy presence and his formidably courageous direct contribution to the diminution of “worm burner candidates” at Minute Maid Park. We shall never forget how he stood up to Manny Muchado of the Baltimore Orioles and his bubble gum blow off attempt – and how Astro fans booed the Oriole slugger for his insensitive and bullish attempt to chase little Rallybird away from the dinner table.
Come back and see us again sometime, Ral! And, by the way, you didn’t happen to stowaway with the Astros for their Marvel Comics win over the Minnesota Twins this Memorial Day, did you?
Astros Rallybird
Minute Maid Park
A Saturday Superhero
Saturday, May 27, 2017
“Sometimes Once is Forever.”
Hello, Birdie
No need to miss us so;
Hello, Birdie,
There’s no need to go!
You brought sunshine,
It followed you this way;
No tears, Birdie,
Come on home to stay.
____________________
Bill McCurdy
Publisher, Editor, Writer
The Pecan Park Eagle
The Pecan Park Eagle 
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