Monday Monday 2.23.2009

Hi Everyone,

Maggie spent the weekend at Foxwoods in Connecticut, so I hung out at home discussing the finer aspects of America’s Game with our roommate, Scott. After this weekend, I find myself on the verge of buying partial season tickets to the Minor League Baseball’s Bowie Baysox of Southern Maryland: the AA Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Since I went to a professional Basketball Game, Minor League Hockey Game, and the Indian Land High-School to toss the baseball; you might say that I had a sports oriented weekend.

A short dissertation about my personal obsession with baseball follows:

Going to watch a professional basketball game between the Charlotte Bobcats and the Orlando Magic where two of the greatest players of all time observed from the sidelines (Michael Jordan as partial owner of the Bobcats and Patrick Ewing as Assistant Coach of the Magic) doesn’t even compare with the experience of watching high school level baseball. Normally seeing Ewing and Jordan on the same court would cause some degree of excitement for even the most moderate of basketball fans, but I miss my baseball too much.

Last year, I visited 11 major league baseball stadiums and one minor league stadium at home in Charlotte. My journey through the sport’s various cities left me with an appreciation for all that goes into the baseball experience: the unique food in a unique stadium, a cold beer while keeping a meticulous score, and an odd patience for sporadic excitement.

All the local color of Pittsburgh, all the bad sides of New York, the History of Philadelphia, and all the glitz of Hollywood come to life in the home ballparks of Major League Baseball’s Pirates, Mets, Yankees, Phillies and Dodgers. My year long single sport quest presented itself as a city by city tour of the United States, and I can say with some degree of confidence that you can judge a city by its ballpark. Take the Pirates for instance; a team occupying Pittsburgh in three different centuries (since 1891 to be exact) but failing to produce a Pennant in the last 30 years. The Bucs finished last season at the bottom of their division and had damn near the worse record in baseball; yet when I attended a game in the latter part of the ‘08 season, and long after the playoffs were a foregone conclusion, the Pittsburgh fans seemed oblivious to their team’s misfortune. As they say, “There’s always next year”. I guess it doesn’t matter whether your team wins or loses (although we do all like to see the home team on top) because you can still go watch baseball, score the game, eat a hot dog, and wash it all down with an ice cold Bud Light (unless your watching the game at Coors Field in Denver or Miller Park in Milwaukee – you may have to order the local fare at those two parks). Like the Pirate fans cling to their Pennant memories of 30 year’s gone by, the residents of Pittsburgh are a resilient bunch of people clinging to the glory days of the steel and manufacturing industry that occurred through the mid 20th century.

For me, these little likenesses and nuances make the viewing of baseball a National History Lesson. At the same time, its activities make baseball a great National Pastime. Particularly the score keeping is a meticulous and precise activity where the fans can get involved with every pitch, hit, out, and inning. In my case, I’m trying to record Hits, RBI’s, and Runs in my scorebook while also clutching a soda in one hand and a Hot Dog in the other. When considering the obesity problem in America – it’s hard to believe there’s anything more American than this. I cannot imagine trying to record stats for a less segmented game like basketball where you have 12 minute quarters and numerous possessions. Not to disrespect or diminish basketball; a sport where superior athleticism, raw talent, and precision are paramount to a successful organization. I’m merely trying to emphasize the aspects of my sport that get me excited about April. I’ll consider seeing Patrick Ewing and Michael Jordan together as a major highlight of my live basketball experiences, but it falls short of that day where the Pittsburgh Pirates competed in a game with absolutely no bearing on the outcome of the regular or post seasons.

Someday when I arrive at my second career, I hope to somehow get involved with baseball. During my retirement years, I don’t mind the prospect of working at the ticket counter, between the aisles as an usher, or even in the stands yelling “Get your Hot Dogs!” Just give me a justification to go to the ball field every day, and I will.

So “Put Me in Coach! I’m Ready to Play”

Ryan