October 21, 2004

THE RED SOX [YAWN] WIN THE PENNANT

Okay, I guess I'm supposed to feel empowered now that the Boston Red Sox have at last made it back to the World Series. I'm told by SportsCenter and every baseball writer in America that this is a pivotal moment in our nation's consciousness, the moment when we realized that we could rise up, like the BoSox, and defeat Big Bad Corporate America.

And as a member of the blogosphere, I guess I'm supposed to feel compelled to comment on it somehow.

Whatever.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, millionaires playing against multimillionaires is only marginally interesting to me. Even after listening to all the pre-game hype on Wednesday, after hearing Peter Gammons say that this was the most important game in baseball history [as if that means something any longer], I still only had the capacity to watch the first out and the last out. In between, I attempted to swallow my tongue with the sweet, deep sleep that only death usually affords.

That's not to say I'm not a baseball fan. In fact, I still have the 1975 glass beer stein with the Red Sox lineup on it from the American League Championship Series. I inherited it after a friend passed away about 10 years ago.

RedSox1.jpg

RedSox2.jpg

As much as I fear this makes me sound like an old man, I love what baseball was. Even as late as the early 1980s, baseball had a purity about it that made it easy for me to root for teams and players. These days, I'll watch some key games, I'll even take in a Devil Rays game or three each season. But MLB has lost all of its charm. The closest I can get to the game is in the minor leagues, where it still feels intimate and warm and full of character. I can't imagine going out and rioting to celebrate my team's victory, like Boston fans did last night.

And I can't even fathom the emotion felt by a Sox fan watching the series from Iraq.

But in an attempt to understand the allure of last night's game, I went out on the Web after last night's game and captured a bunch of pages. It helped a little, but still left me a little cold.

Here they are:

The Boston Globe

Boston Herald

ESPN.com

MSNBC.com

SI.com

The New York Times

The Washington Post

Posted by Jeff at October 21, 2004 07:07 AM | TrackBack
Comments

Jeff, I had no idea you were such a cynic! I enjoy baseball when the players are hungry for it and play with passion and heart. That's certainly happened in this series. Schilling's pitching in game six alone was proof of that. Clearly, the chance to change history can goose an otherwise long, dull game in the seat. It certainly changed the mind of this long-dormant third generation Sox fan.

Posted by: Meg at October 21, 2004 09:46 PM

Maybe as a lifelong - if dormant - Red Sox fan.

But not after you've spent your life as a Baltimore Orioles fan (1975-80), moved on to the Atlanta Braves (1980-1990), then to the Florida Marlins (1993-97) and lastly the Devil Rays, the bad taste left in your mouth by bad ownership and shitty players is enough to turn you off completely.

Posted by: Jeff at October 22, 2004 04:49 AM

Gotcha.

Posted by: Meg at October 22, 2004 12:13 PM