S & G: Sinatra's Swooners

Maybe they're trying to tell you something, Frankie.

Sinatra had a lifetime love affair with America’s pastime. He sang about it, from his and Gene Kelly’s version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” in the film of the same title, to the melancholy “There Used to be a Ballpark,” a 1970s recording.
Sinatra didn’t just play a second baseman in Take Me Out to the Ball Game, he also played second base in real life, on a late-’40s softball team he formed called "The Swooners"- most likely a play off the thousands of fan clubs claiming to be Frankie's united swooners. Other team members included actors Robert Stack, Anthony Quinn, Robert Mitchum, and Barry Sullivan, along with a bevy of cheerleaders including Virginia Mayo, Shelly Winters, and Ava Gardner.