I thought about what Italy might have looked like if the World Baseball Classic had existed in 1948 with Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Roy Campanella, and Carl Furillo. I thought we would have won it. So, with a little imagination, I told the story of how.
“Would you have said it, Ernie?” “No, Babe. You know optimism has never been my strong suit.” On the morning of March 21, 1948, Babe Pinelli and Ernie Lombardi were having breakfast while looking out over the ocean from the terrace of the Nacional Hotel in Havana. Neither of them had slept. Too much adrenaline.
