It's October, and you know what that means. It's time for midterms, the inexplicable continuation of warm weather and too many people overlooking the MLB playoffs. Despite the fact that we're in the midst of a particularly exciting postseason, baseball is frequently overshadowed by other major sports.
I'm sure everyone has heard people claim that baseball is "boring" or "stupid." I've even heard supposed sports enthusiasts allege that baseball is just "a bunch of overweight guys spitting and scratching themselves." It's easy for people to say this because, to the untrained eye, baseball really is just a stupid, boring bunch of fat guys who spit and scratch themselves. In baseball's defense, I'd like to break down the reasons why people might brush off baseball and then explain how they make the game even better.
First off, there is the conception that many baseball players are lazy, have pot bellies and waddle when they run. Whoops, did I mean to say misconception? No, because it's the truth. Take David Wells of the Los Angeles Dodgers, for example. Not only has he dangerously flirted with 300 pounds for much of his career, he has also pitched a no-hitter (one of baseball's greatest individual achievements) while half-drunk and has recently eaten his way to Type 2 diabetes. Even one of the game's greatest, Babe Ruth, looked more like the Pillsbury Doughboy than an athlete.
But, is this a problem? No way! It merely adds excitement and entertainment to the game. How great is it that when a batter with man boobs steps up to the plate, everyone is thinking home run. If you need comic relief, just watch a pitcher with back problems and a double chin try to field a bunt or a sluggish first baseman slowly chase a ground ball.
You might also say there's too much else going on in the sports world this time of year to worry about baseball. Football season is full swing in both the pros and in college; hockey is starting up; and basketball fans are salivating in anticipation of November. Still, there is no reason that baseball should be left out -- you can just watch sports all day. In this case, you can have your cake and eat it too. Not literally, however, because if you actually spend your entire day watching sports on TV, cake is probably the last thing you need. That is, unless you're an aspiring power hitter or pitcher in the major leagues, in which case you should eat to your heart's desire.
Lastly, there is the boring stigma that many associate with baseball. The defenders stand around most of the time and entire innings can go by without so much as a hit. Often times, managers will change pitchers multiple times in an inning, and the broadcast will spend more time on commercials than showing the game. Perhaps even more frustrating are the plate appearances that seem to go on forever. Their play-by-play goes a little something like this: foul ball, foul ball, throw to first, foul ball, pitcher spits, batter spits, another throw to first and finally everyone in the stadium falls asleep simultaneously.
But, can't these criticisms be made of nearly every sport? Think of soccer games that go 90 scoreless minutes, football games that turn into punting contests or basketball games where five timeouts are called in the last two minutes of the game.
Besides, even if the game gets slow, you can just do what every hardcore baseball fan does -- obsess over statistics. Baseball offers a wealth of exceedingly complex and comprehensive stats to measure virtually everything a baseball player can do. Some of the more important stats include OPS (on base plus slugging), WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched), VORP (value over replacement player) and IHOP (international house of... wait, never mind). Everything in baseball can be represented with a number, from how many times a player strikes out to how many times he picks his nose in the outfield.
Now that you know the lowdown about baseball, I hope you give it a chance. Watch as the surging Rockies attempt to extend their winning streak and the Red Sox attempt to break the curse again, not having won a World Series in nearly three years. If the foul balls and throws to first don't put you to sleep, you just might find yourself liking it.
Daniel's column runs biweekly Mondays. He can be reached at mcnally@cavalierdaily.com.
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