…and pore over the box scores and standings during the season. They share season tickets. They even agree that whoever dies first will try to come back and tell the other if there is baseball in Heaven.

One summer night, Bob suffers a heart attack while watching the Cubs win the World Series. A few nights later, his buddy Joe awakens to the sound of Bob’s voice calling his name.

“Bob, Is that you?” Joe asks.

“Hey, a promise is a promise,” Bob replies.

“This is unbelievable!” Joe exclaims. “So tell me, is there baseball in heaven?”

“Well, I’ve got good news, and I’ve got bad news. The good news is that there is baseball in heaven, Joe. And it’s the greatest. All the best players are there, and we all pick teams. Yesterday, in fact, I played on a team with Dimaggio, Gehrig, and Williams!”

“That’s great, Bob! So what’s the bad news?”

“I just saw the lineup cards, Joe,” Bob’s voice replies. “Tomorrow night, you’re at short and batting leadoff.”