Baseball - How I never truly knew thee!

I haven't been a fan of baseball. For years I've considered it to be the most boring of sports. I've never enjoyed watching it on TV and it isn't much more appealing live. In the spirit of full disclosure I have to say that I only ever played baseball one season as a child. It was fast pitch elementary school ball and I was incredibly intimidated by the whole process. I hated batting and I think my lack of batting prowess lead my coach to an unfair assumption about my fielding ability. As a result I was relegated to the outfield. This experience did nothing to build a good foundation of appreciation for baseball.

But I think I am coming around on it as a sport. This weekend I am taking my boys to the local college game that is being played and I'm actually pretty excited. In fact it is my children that are helping to create that paradigm shift. My boys are playing T-Ball for the first time this season. As I sit on the sideline and watch the coaches teach my boys about the infield and outfield positions I can't help but realize how important teamwork is to baseball. It is perhaps more important than any other sport. It is true that teamwork is required in basketball, football, hockey, and so many others. But in these sports you often hear of ball-hogs or primadonas. You don't hear of that as much in baseball. I'm beginning to see why - first hand.

When a 5 year old leaves second base to go muscle in on the 3rd baseman's position he leaves 2nd base unattended. When he does that there is a huge gap in the infield. By hogging another position the 2nd basemen lets down his teammates with respect to his 2nd base assignment. I know this sounds obvious when I say it but I really never thought about it until I started watching my own boys.

Also when someone in the outfield snags a grounder and throws it to 1st base that outfielder has to trust that the 1st basemen will do his job. The outfielder cannot physically run to first base and tag out the runner. It would be impossible even if he wanted to do it. The game of baseball demands teamwork and trust more than any other sport. It is for this reason that I am now giving baseball a chance.

So to the gods of baseball, I extend my most humble apology and tip my hat to you. I am looking forward to a much more meaningful relationship from this point forward.