Doc Gooden

Doc Gooden
Album	In League With Dragons
Released	April 26, 2019
Length	4:18
Previous Track	"In League with Dragons"
Next Track	"Going Invisible 2"

Doc Gooden is the seventh song on In League with Dragons.

Lyrics

Wheels down in Seattle
Three years ago in this town
They sent their best and brightest to me
I sent them all back down

Deluxe coach to the ballpark
There's champagne on the snack trays
Summon up the spirit of a brighter time
Looked bad last week against the Blue Jays

When my name was everywhere
None of you were there
When my name was everywhere

Potholes in the parking lot
You feel the jolts a little harder every year
The bat boy hands out yellow slickers
It never stops raining out here

When my name was everywhere
None of you were there
When my name was everywhere

When the speedball would squeal
With the highlight reel
When the headline hype
Was on the front page in extra large type
It was me, for all the world to see

Don’t call it a comeback
I've been here for years
Maximum respect to all the warriors
Who choose to fall down on their spears

When my name was everywhere
None of you were there
When my name was everywhere

Comments by John Darnielle About this Song

• "This is a song about a baseball pitcher. Because it’s a Mountain Goats song, he’s going to run into some bad luck. Because it’s a later Mountain Goats song, he’s going to spend a lot of time trying to climb up out of it." -- 2019-11-22 - Sala 0 - Madrid, Spain

Things Referenced in this Song

• Dwight 'Doc' Gooden was an outstanding pitcher for the New York Mets from 1984 to 1988, whose baseball career faltered and declined after injuries and, most significantly, alcohol and cocaine addiction. The phrase 'Don't call it a comeback' probably places the setting of the song after Gooden's full year suspension in 1995, or at least after 1991, when LL Cool J released "Mama Said Knock You Out", which originated the phrase "don't call it a comeback, I've been here for years".
  • On May 19, 2000, the Yankees played in Seattle and Doc started, the likely setting of the song. The line "Three years ago in this town, they sent their best and brightest to me, and I sent them all back down" may refer to his no-hitter against Seattle; however, that was in 1996 (4 years before), at Yankee Stadium.

Live Shows this Song Was Played at

• 2019-11-10 - Rockefeller - Oslo, Norway
• 2019-11-11 - Pustervik - Gothenburg, Sweden
• 2019-11-14 - De Helling - Utrecht, The Netherlands
• 2019-11-15 - O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire - London, England
• 2019-11-16 - Brudenell Social Club - Leeds, England
• 2019-11-18 - St. Luke's - Glasgow, Scotland
• 2019-11-20 - Button Factory - Dublin, Ireland
• 2019-11-22 - Sala 0 - Madrid, Spain
• 2019-11-23 - Cafe Torgal - Ourense, Spain
• 2019-11-24 - Lisboa ao Vivo - Lisbon, Portugal
• 2022-05-19 - Thalia Hall - Chicago, IL
• 2022-05-21 - The Sylvee - Madison, WI