The start of the 2017 college baseball season is just around the bend, and soon enough we'll roll out our season preview. In the interest of providing the reader with an apéritif, let us relive a moment of baseball glory from the 1982 College World Series. It's the second round, and Miami is about to pull off an act of chicanery at the expense of Wichita State -- an act that would come to be known as "The Grand Illusion." Come with us, won't you?
Excelsior! Spotted therein? Mustaches, umps in leisure wear, one possible pair of dugout hot pants, and a funky delivery. Also spotted? The Grand Illusion. Particularly impressive is that pretty much entire Miami roster was in on the act, as they sold it pretty well from the dugout. Fun fact: Phil Stephenson, the victim of this particular con, was the younger brother of legendary Wichita State head coach Gene Stephenson, who's seen above in a state of agitated perplexity. As it turns out, Miami beat favored Wichita State twice in that CWS as they went on to claim the national championship.
What about it, Irv? What about it, Irv, indeed.