Jack Prelutsky’s Sports Page
I Had to Slide Into the Plate
I had to slide into the plate,
It was my only chance.
Though if I hadn’t slid, then I
Would not have lost my pants.
From Good Sports: rhymes about running, jumping, throwing, and more, Alfred A. Knopf, 2007.
Awful Ogre Reflects on Athletics
When I was a youngster,
I harbored a dream
Of being the star
Of a basketball team.
My shooting was aimless,
My passing a joke.
Whenever I dribbled,
The basketball broke.
I went out for football,
It wasn’t to be…
My teammates were frightened
To practice with me.
A helmet would hardly
Fit over my head.
As soon as they saw me,
The cheerleaders fled.
My sojourn with baseball
Was more of the same,
My strike zone was simply
Too big for the game.
I even played hockey
Against all advice,
I put on my skates,
And I fell through the ice.
I finally tried tennis,
But that was the worst . . .
My rackets all shattered
As tennis balls burst.
I knocked over nets
And made mincemeat of courts—
I’m starting to sense
I’m unsuited for sports.
From Awful Ogre's Awful Day, Greenwillow Books, 2001.
The Farm’s Karate Festival
At the farm’s karate festival,
the lambs and mules were tops.
The mules excelled at kicking,
but the lambs had better chops.
From It's Raining Pigs & Noodles, Greenwillow Books, 1993.
I'm Going to Dunk this Basketball
I’m going to dunk this basketball,
I’ll soar above the rim.
I’ll fly so high that everyone
Will cry out, “Look at him!”
My dunk will be spectacular—
The greatest of them all.
When I grow three feet taller,
I will dunk this basketball.
From Good Sports: rhymes about running, jumping, throwing, and more, Alfred A. Knopf, 2007.
I Played a Game of Golf Today
I played a game of golf today—
I’d never played before.
I wasn’t very good at it
And won’t play anymore.
I shot a sixty-seven,
Which was surely not my goal.
My score was even higher
When I played the second hole.
From I've Lost My Hippopotamus, Greenwillow Books, 2012.
The Skigulls
Silently the Skigulls glide
Down the snowy mountainside,
Swift and graceful, at their ease,
Masters of their built-in skis.
At the bottom of the hill,
They’re unlikely to stay still.
To the top the Skigulls soar. . . .
Soon they’ll ski the slopes once more.
SKEE-gullz
From Hard-Boiled Bugs for Breakfast, Greenwillow Books, 2021.
The Ball Comes to Me
The ball comes to me,
And I kick the ball back.
We’re looking to score,
So we’re on the attack.
We slip past defenders
With sure-footed play,
Till only the goalkeeper
Stands in our way.
I pass to a teammate
Who shoots . . . it looks wide.
The goalkeeper lunges,
But luck’s on our side.
The ball hits a goalpost,
Then goes in the net—
We’re down only ten,
And may win this game yet.
From Good Sports: rhymes about running, jumping, throwing, and more, Alfred A. Knopf, 2007.