THE BASEBALL HISTORY COMES ALIVE BLOG

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June 11, 2021

New Blog Topic:

Just What Is It About This Game We All Love?

and

Be Sure to Check out the Two Videos Below!

I thought I’d offer you something just a little bit different today. I’ll take off my “baseball history cap” for a moment and put on my “reflections cap.” That’s the nice thing about have a blog at your disposal…you can expound on just about anything you want. So I’ll ask you to indulge me a little as I do a little rambling, while you can engage in a little reflecting of your own. Let’s see if you come to the same conclusions I do.

Those of us who have been around for a while tend to have a rather jaded view of the game today. We’re not particularly pleased with what we see. Whether it’s the infiltration of mega-bucks, the takeover of the game by the analytic nerds, the crazy new rules altering the basic structure of the game, or the predominance of home runs and strikeouts, it seems that it’s just not the same game we grew up with.  And this bothers us.

But I’m here to tell you that all is not lost. There’s still plenty of hope. That same “intangible quality” – that fascination with the game we perceived in our youth – is still there and continues to attract new generations of fans. I can’t quite get my hand on it but I know it’s there. And if you disagree with me, check out the two videos I’ve included with this post. I think they’ll prove my point.

What game besides baseball could evoke such emotions as we see so vividly in these videos? Maybe because it’s the game most of us grew up playing. It allows us to recall treasured experiences from our youth, and the bonding moments we had with our friends and our fathers. Maybe it’s the display of raw athletic ability we see when at a game, allowing us to engage in our own personal fantasy.

MIKE TROUT AND THE LITTLE GUY IN THE RED ANGELS CAP

The first video is basically a compilation of “Mike Trout being a good guy.” It’s the opening scene to which I want to call your attention. Check out the emotional outburst from the little guy in the red Angels cap after he gets an autographed ball. It’s even doubly sweet, as I suspect Mike Trout is his idol as he’s wearing a Trout jersey. I actually got chills up and down my spine just watching it. The kid is overcome with emotion. It’s obviously something he’ll never forget. And then there’s the wonderful bonding moment when he gets a big hug from his father, who shares in his son’s excitement. What a wonderful father-son moment!

Could anything besides baseball evoke such an emotional outburst? I think we can all agree that the game today may not be perfect, but if it’s still capable of eliciting responses like that from kids, then all is certainly not lost. The rest of the video is also worth watching with other similar, heart-warming scenes.

 

TREVOR WILLIAMS AND HIS DAD

The second video is totally different but is still a great example of just how important baseball is in our lives. It’s the great scene when Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams goes into the stand to see his family after winning his major league debut. The reaction of his father is priceless. If it doesn’t bring tears to your eyes, then something is wrong. The father is so proud of his son, having made it to the major leagues, and so overcome with emotion that he can hardly speak. There is so much tied into a scene like this that it’s almost impossible to put to words, so I won’t even try. Looking at the featured photo above, I’m reminded of the phrase, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Whoever coined that phrase certainly had a moment like this in mind. I just hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

So what exactly am I trying to say? I’m not really sure, other than I love the game as I know all of you reading this do. The game itself is alive and well, even if we don’t like some of the things we’re currently seeing. It’s still a big part of the American experience, and continues to transcend whatever divisions might exist in our society. As such, it remains a large source of hope.

Plus, if it’s capable of evoking such emotional reactions as we’re seeing here from both young and old alike, then just maybe things aren’t as bad as we’ve been thinking!

Gary Livacari

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