By: Dave Funnell Follow me on my Twitter account for more baseball content.
When I think of what the game of baseball means to me, the first thing that came to mind was the beauty of the game itself. At home plate, there’s a player from Team A coming up to bat. He’s alone with only his talents and just one weapon, a bat, in an attempt to swat away whatever life has to offer from Team B. That player also steps into battle against nine other opponents (Team B), and faces one person’s best offerings. There are two outcomes: the batter will either be safe because he/she did just enough or he/she will be out because they didn’t do enough. Either way, though, as George Carlin said, all the batter wants to do is go home.
It’s such a beautiful game in that there’s no time limit. Sure, there are innings involved and now a pitch clock, so some form of limitations exist. However, in the grand scheme of it all, it’s up to the players involved. For instance, if the pitches aren’t good enough to fool the batters, the team hitting can score an infinite amount of runs at the discretion of the manager. Contrary to that, if the pitches are too good for the hitters, then it could be a very quick game. All in all, it’s dependent on the players themselves for how long the game will take.
“Every day is a new opportunity. You can build on yesterday’s success or put its failures behind and start over again. That’s the way life is, with a new game every day, and that’s the way baseball is.” – Bob Feller
There’s something so simple about baseball yet it’s likely the most complex game to describe to young children. As a teacher and a father, I’ve never been able to explain the basics and intricacies of it to our youth. I mean, why is it a runner needs to be tagged by the ball in certain situations while other times the defender can just touch the base? Or why is it that an infield fly causes an automatic out at some points, while other times it does not? To me, just like life, there are some things that children need not worry about until later on. But it’s also something that grows on you too.
Outside of the beauty of the game itself, baseball means a lot to me because of the people in my life that it has involved. Baseball has become a stalwart in our lives and a common ground of familiarity for us with regard to how we interact. For instance:
My dad – his love for the game is the basis for why I love it now. From an early age, he got me involved in the game as a player and was my T-ball coach. He taught me how to throw, how to hit and showed me how to throw a curveball. Even later in life, he was instrumental in my sons’ love for the game as, at the tender age of 76, he could be seen showing my boys how to pitch as well.
Throughout the years, we would watch baseball together live and on TV, while also discuss the game on a daily basis. He loved his Toronto Blue Jays more than most could and should, and our talks would center around what they should do next. He knew that team inside and out and was on Santiago Espinal before anyone else was. Even during his final days in the hopsital, we would watch the Jays whenever we could. For us, baseball was the most important thing that brought together two opposites. We wouldn’t agree on many other things, nor would we have the patience for each other, but it was baseball that brought us together and helped pave the road towards a bond.
My wife – she grew up in a baseball family herself, as she and her dad worked many MLB All-Star game Fan Fest and loved the game too. She grew up playing the game, and in our first two years together, we both played on the same softball team. She was a force at the plate, elevating balls over defenders heads, but was even better with the glove, playing the hot corner with finesse and her golden glove. Since then, we’ve been known to grab our gloves and a baseball for a simple game of catch, or even better, head to a diamond for batting practice. Through her, I’ve met some incredible people who love baseball, such as her father Rick, her brothers Bob and Lucas, and her cousin Chris.
My children – baseball has been a focal point for some of my greatest memories with them. I have two boys and one girl, and over the years we have attended many games. What’s been great for each time we have gone to a game, we’ve been able to come home with at least one ball. One of my fondest memories was when we went to a Buffalo Bisons game, and the temperature was too cold and windy for a game, but there we were, with about 50 other fans, watching baseball. That said, there are benefits to an empty stadium, and we definitely took advantage of them, as we came home with six baseballs that day.
My friends – some of my greatest memories while growing up have to do with baseball. Two of my longest tenured friends, Mike and Carlo, have been with me through thick and thin, and we’ve had many home run derbies since we met in high school. We’ve gone to various stadiums and fields over time, and even once brought the equipment with us for overnight getaways in Rochester and Syracuse for some Minor League Baseball. We’ve also visited Cooperstown and went to the Baseball Hall of Fame together, and were able to relive history.
Baseball has and always will be an important part of my life. Whether I’m watching for the love of the game or reading box scores to see who I should use on my fantasy team, I will always love the game that has given me so much. It has helped make me the person that I am today, and I’m forever grateful for that. I’m happy when I watch the game and I’m content to throw a baseball. It truly is one of the greatest games there is. From the sounds of the bat connecting with the ball, to the smell of a used baseball glove, to the feel of connecting with a pitch where you know it’s a home run, to the taste of peanuts and crackerjacks and the sight of everything on the field, baseball really is a sport that has it all and has given me so much. What more can I ask for in life?