I love baseball. There is no secret about that. In fact, I do believe I have shared that personal little bit of valuable information about myself on previous occasions. Of all the sports I attempted in my youth, baseball was probably the one at which I had the most success. I didn't pursue it long, but even after my brief playing time was done, I enjoyed watching baseball. When I lived in South Florida for a couple of years, I often enjoyed a short trip to watch the Florida Marlins play. Tickets were pretty cheap and I could be at the stadium in under an hour. That was before they moved to the new stadium near downtown Miami, ticket prices sky rocketed and parking became a major detriment. But even though high ticket prices and lack of convenient parking kept me away from the stadium, I still enjoyed the game.
I have been very fortunate to have been able to watch high school baseball (and softball) games and write about them. This year, I have seen baseball games that were as good as any games I have ever seen, regardless of playing level. It has been a true pleasure to watch the young baseball team grow and mature and get better as the season progressed. That has been a fun experience as a mere baseball fan, in addition to writing about it.
This year, baseball has served as a wonderful escape from all the “stuff” of the rest of the world. I think that is an important aspect of sports, in general, that is sometimes overlooked. I think people need those forms of reprieve from the stresses that go along with just plain living as an adult these days. I heard one friend refer to it as “slaying the dragon.” I think that's a pretty good way to put it.
Recently, I have been afraid that the “dragon” has been trying to creep into the baseball stadium. When Major League Baseball decided to surrender to a group of party-poopers who had gotten their collective panties in a wad over the State of Georgia making it more difficult to cheat in future elections, they decided to move the annual All-Star game from Atlanta to Denver, a place where it's apparently easier to cheat in elections. I'm not going to get into a debate over whether it should be harder or easier for people to cheat in future elections, that's not what this visit is about. I just don't want all that “dragon” stuff to find its way into baseball. When I watch a baseball game, I want to see good pitching and hitting and fielding; not deal with social arguments and other “dragon” type things.
I love it when I'm at the baseball diamond, watching kids who don't give a hoot about the pigmentation of a person's hide or who another person might vote for play a great game that they love. That's one thing I really love about baseball, especially when there's not a dragon in sight.