Ok, so I am awake right now on 4 hours of sleep. At about 10pm last night, it hit me randomly, like it does every year. The switch in my brain went off and the lights turned on.
It's mid-February. It's fucking Baseball season!
At that moment, this feeling of joy and happiness came out. I turned to MLB Network and started listening to the news stories from the offseason (granted, I do follow all the moves made in the winter, but it just feels more grand to listen to it all at once)
One friend joked on Facebook, "Great, football's finally over, and now I have to read 400 baseball posts everyday." I simply replied, "Sorry, but it's baseball.". It's that optimism and feel of a new beginning that doesn't come with any other sport or job or hobby around. It's like dating the girl of your dreams, only to take some time apart for 3-4 months, only to come back with a passion strong enough to bond forever.
I love baseball. I was raised on it as a small child. It helped me through my darkest days in high school. I missed junior and senior prom for a 6:05 match-up of my White Sox versus the KC Royals. It bonded me and my mom even closer, going to countless games in our season ticket seats out in right field. The ritual of entering the ballpark the same way depending on who I was their with. The countless, 2 Hot Dogs, Grilled Onions and Ketchup and a Pop.
I never got to fully play the game due to injuries, but I took my free time and studied the game harder than any school subject I had. It was peaceful and fun, and even as I reach age 23, there's nothing I enjoy more than 2 dogs in the outfield seats, with the fresh-cut grass, the slap of a glove catching a 95-mph Fastball, and the crack of a bat, scorching a ball 400 feet into the blue skies.
So, let's Play Ball!
...And Go Sox! :)
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