Play Ball!

Take me out to the ball game, take me out to the crowd…

Baseball season is upon us!

I prepared for opening day by doing what I do best…by watching my favorite baseball movies.

42, Fever Pitch, Trouble with the Curve, Moneyball, The Rookie, and of course The Sandlot. (Does Signs count?  Yeah, I know, main focus is on aliens BUT…Merrill was a ball player and he DID take down that alien with a baseball bat…I’m going to add it to my list anyway.)

Baseball means summer which means sunshine.  Sunshine complimented with beer, hot dogs, peanuts, and lemon chills.  Preferably shared but on the hottest days, I’d get that frozen sweet and sour tub of lemon ice all to myself.  And the caramel popcorn that has just been popping up in our stadium these past few years is just rude.  You can’t walk past that area without your mouth instantly watering.

And most recently, the seventh inning stretch comes with annoying my mom by putting on my best (worst) southern accent to sing some Dolly.

One more hour and I’ll be home.  Close my eyes and rest my bones.  Can’t be more than an hour or so FROM Cincinnati, Ohio.  Cincinnati, Ohio.

(I know my mom will cringe reading that.)  I’ve gotten so many sunburns from sitting in the stands, shoulders in direct sunlight and not paying enough attention to realize that my shoulders are hot or my shorts moving when I sit down (that sunburn took me two years to fix).  The worst was the summer that I only wore workout knee pants.  My calves were awfully tan, the rest of my legs were as white as paper.  I’ve gone to a game in so much heat that we had to leave, afraid of turning into a puddle in our own seats.  I’ve also gone to a game where I’m wearing snow boots and drinking hot chocolate while it snows on us.  Ohio weather is crazy.

I do have to say that one of the best things about baseball season is looking up to the tv at a bar or when you are flipping channels at home and seeing at least one game on.  The sun is shining bright while the pitcher stares down the glove in the catcher’s hand.  There’s a different feel to each game compared to a football game.  You aren’t waiting for one day a week to watch your team play.  If they lose the game that day, they have another one tomorrow against the same team, almost like a do-over.  It’s a lot less stress and then way more exciting if your team sweeps the other team.

So, enjoy your baseball season, whether its at home on the couch, traveling with your team, at the bar, or at the stadium you call home.   I hope your team wins all their games, goes to the world series, and wins it all!

Unless you aren’t a reds fan.

Then I don’t wish you ALL of that luck, just some of it.

Sorry.

(GO REDS!)

Photo from: https://ramsey.mlblogs.com/new-at-great-american-ball-park-in-2017-7b56e65d767b