Wednesday, March 18, 2009

I love the spring time for several reasons, Easter is one of them. But another reason is baseball. I love baseball and I love baseball season. To me, it’s the best sport to play and by far the best sport to go and watch. I love going to the ball park, especially AT&T or whatever we call it now. I think it has something to do with the grass, the dirt, the diamond, the chalk, the sunshine and all the aura surrounded with the ball park.
I was thinking during my quiet time this morning, “Why do I love baseball so much?” What, you say? You don’t think there is anything spiritual about baseball? Many of baseball’s best players have been named after major characters in the Bible: Ruth, Aaron and Moises, just to name a few. As you can tell I’m trying to make this blog somewhat spiritual but it’s not working. Here’s a few of the reasons I love baseball so much.
· You’re a good hitter if you fail 7 out of 10 times. You’re a great hitter if you fail 6 out of 10 times. I love that about baseball. George Will wrote about teams “Baseball’s best teams lose about 65 times a season. It’s not a game you can play with your teeth clenched.”
· I love baseball because I think hitting a round ball with a round bat is the hardest thing to do in any sport (see the success rate above). A ball travelling 90 + MPH from 60 feet 6 inches and the ball is cutting, curving, sinking, sliding or knuckling. And the sound of a bat hitting a ball is sweet to the ears.
· I love baseball because there’s no clock. You really never know how long a game will last. So just take off your watch and soak in the sun. With no clock, the bottom of the 9th can potentially be the most exciting time of any sport. This is why “the closer”gets paid so much.
· I love baseball because your best player can look like Harry Potter e.g. Tim Lincecum. Only in baseball can a great player be named Pee-Wee. Have you ever heard of a football player named Pee – Wee? I rest my case.
· I love baseball because the game does not need cheerleaders. We know when to cheer, thank you. Baseball has old guys who sit near the bull pen to catch foul ground balls. It’s fun to watch them try. And when they miss? You can always elbow your wife and say, “I could have made that play.”
· I love baseball because the home run is the best thing in sports. The dinger. The tater. Gone yard. Touch em all. The grand salami. Kiss er good bye. A cove shot. Hasta la vista baby. A rope. A moon shot. Round tripper. The big fly. A rainmaker. A four bagger. I remember my son and I were at the game when Bonds hit 661 to break May’s record. Steroids or not, it was pretty exciting to see that ball sail into the cove.
George Carlin wrote a funny piece comparing football with baseball. He writes:
In football you wear a helmet. In baseball you wear a cap.
Football is concerned with downs - what down is it? Baseball is concerned with ups - who's up?
In football you receive a penalty. In baseball you make an error.
In football the specialist comes in to kick. In baseball the specialist comes in to relieve somebody.
Football has hitting, clipping, spearing, piling on, personal fouls, late hitting and unnecessary roughness. Baseball has the sacrifice.
Baseball has no time limit: we don't know when it's gonna end - might have extra innings. Football is rigidly timed, and it will end even if we've got to go to sudden death.
And finally, the objectives of the two games are completely different:
In football the object is for the quarterback, also known as the field general, to be on target with his aerial assault, riddling the defense by hitting his receivers with deadly accuracy in spite of the blitz, even if he has to use shotgun. With short bullet passes and long bombs, he marches his troops into enemy territory, balancing this aerial assault with a sustained ground attack that punches holes in the forward wall of the enemy's defensive line.
In baseball the object is to go home! And to be safe!
I was thinking during my quiet time this morning, “Why do I love baseball so much?” What, you say? You don’t think there is anything spiritual about baseball? Many of baseball’s best players have been named after major characters in the Bible: Ruth, Aaron and Moises, just to name a few. As you can tell I’m trying to make this blog somewhat spiritual but it’s not working. Here’s a few of the reasons I love baseball so much.
· You’re a good hitter if you fail 7 out of 10 times. You’re a great hitter if you fail 6 out of 10 times. I love that about baseball. George Will wrote about teams “Baseball’s best teams lose about 65 times a season. It’s not a game you can play with your teeth clenched.”
· I love baseball because I think hitting a round ball with a round bat is the hardest thing to do in any sport (see the success rate above). A ball travelling 90 + MPH from 60 feet 6 inches and the ball is cutting, curving, sinking, sliding or knuckling. And the sound of a bat hitting a ball is sweet to the ears.
· I love baseball because there’s no clock. You really never know how long a game will last. So just take off your watch and soak in the sun. With no clock, the bottom of the 9th can potentially be the most exciting time of any sport. This is why “the closer”gets paid so much.
· I love baseball because your best player can look like Harry Potter e.g. Tim Lincecum. Only in baseball can a great player be named Pee-Wee. Have you ever heard of a football player named Pee – Wee? I rest my case.
· I love baseball because the game does not need cheerleaders. We know when to cheer, thank you. Baseball has old guys who sit near the bull pen to catch foul ground balls. It’s fun to watch them try. And when they miss? You can always elbow your wife and say, “I could have made that play.”
· I love baseball because the home run is the best thing in sports. The dinger. The tater. Gone yard. Touch em all. The grand salami. Kiss er good bye. A cove shot. Hasta la vista baby. A rope. A moon shot. Round tripper. The big fly. A rainmaker. A four bagger. I remember my son and I were at the game when Bonds hit 661 to break May’s record. Steroids or not, it was pretty exciting to see that ball sail into the cove.
George Carlin wrote a funny piece comparing football with baseball. He writes:
In football you wear a helmet. In baseball you wear a cap.
Football is concerned with downs - what down is it? Baseball is concerned with ups - who's up?
In football you receive a penalty. In baseball you make an error.
In football the specialist comes in to kick. In baseball the specialist comes in to relieve somebody.
Football has hitting, clipping, spearing, piling on, personal fouls, late hitting and unnecessary roughness. Baseball has the sacrifice.
Baseball has no time limit: we don't know when it's gonna end - might have extra innings. Football is rigidly timed, and it will end even if we've got to go to sudden death.
And finally, the objectives of the two games are completely different:
In football the object is for the quarterback, also known as the field general, to be on target with his aerial assault, riddling the defense by hitting his receivers with deadly accuracy in spite of the blitz, even if he has to use shotgun. With short bullet passes and long bombs, he marches his troops into enemy territory, balancing this aerial assault with a sustained ground attack that punches holes in the forward wall of the enemy's defensive line.
In baseball the object is to go home! And to be safe!
Maybe that’s why I love baseball; it’s all about going home.
Go Giants!
Pastor Tim
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Hi Pastor Tim
Ahem--the best part of this blog was the end:
"Maybe that’s why I love baseball; it’s all about going home."
Ahem--the best part of this blog was the end:
"Maybe that’s why I love baseball; it’s all about going home."
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