“It's just this way,” said Danny O'Shay,
As he whittled a stick and the hours away,
“A player can booze for a year or two,
The same as me or the same as you.
You meet a ball-gamer now and then
Who can guzzle more than the most of men.
But sooner or later he has to go
The way I was chased from the big league show.
“The difference, kid,” said Danny O'Shay,
“Between the hard and the easy way,
As far as ball players goes, at least,
Is a difference big as the West and East.
I played ten years before I was spurned,
And this is the lesson your uncle learned:
The boozer THINKS he is splitting the wood,
The man that is sober KNOWS he's good.
“You see,” continued Danny O'Shay,
“A dog and a man must have his day.
I played like a demon for seven years,
‘ Till I switched to whiskey and quit my beers.
I laughed at the friends that steered me right,
But here's the difference, black and white:
The boozer THINKS he is splitting the wood,
The man that is sober KNOWS he's good.”