Old baseball scout George Genovese tells when the play was the thing
From David Wharton at the Los Angeles Times on July 29, 2013:
The old baseball scout pulls his cap down over his face, peering through one of the eyelets sewn into the crown. It is a trick he learned in the 1940s.
“Like I’ve got a camera,” he says. “I can zero in on one player.”
Sitting in his usual spot overlooking the third-base line at Dodger Stadium, George Genovese focuses on the talented rookie, Yasiel Puig, in center field.
With everything else blocked from view, Genovese watches and waits, listening for the crack of the bat.
“The best fielders know how to anticipate where the ball is going,” he says. “They take a step before it’s hit.”
A hint of New York marks his accent, a remnant from his youth. And there’s an occasional boyish smile that belies the shock of white hair on his head. All his years in baseball — a lifetime of playing, managing and prowling for fresh talent — have not dampened the thrill of the ballpark.
Read the full article here: http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/dodgers/la-sp-george-genovese-dodgers-20130729-dto,0,4702260.html
Originally published: July 29, 2013. Last Updated: July 29, 2013.