Half the fun is getting there

Just another beauty night for baseball. General lack of sunlight due to the cloud cover, muggy, that slow, sweat-inducing kind of mugginess combined with an earlier start to the game. Still, I stick with my first statement, another beauty night for ball. It Always is. Except when it rains. Rain sucks. Thankfully, none of that wet stuff this evening. Games progressed as usual, one team playing another, followed by another team playing another, playing until the umpire let us stop, with a couple of teams winning, a couple losing, but everyone still having fun. I hope so, at least. Because it is a game, it is played for fun and, at the worst, it gets you out of the house to allow you to socialize with friends and neighbours. For better or worse, a good way to spend a Tuesday evening. One of the best.

Some exceptional plays by all, with everyone gearing up for the month of August, settling in their various positions, making great catches, snappy throws and, on the other side, beautiful hits. Everyone seems to be gearing up for the playoffs and strutting their good stuff. Careful not to peak too early, we still have a few games to suffer through before we go under the lights. Perhaps not a worry, as we still seem able to muck it up occasionally. Without even trying. Would be boring if we didn’t throw a few misplays into the game, breaking up the monotony of perfection, making the game much more fun or, at the very most, unpredictable. Much more humour with something that you cannot predict the outcome of, much more hilarity in the unexpected than the expected, much more fun if you keep everyone guessing. No point in making the effort if the outcome is already decided and harder to entertain others if you always get it right. And, if you set the bar low enough, there is nowhere else to go but up, to get better, to improve, to dream the impossible dream, to fight the unbeatable foe, to plagiarize lyrics to songs most people cannot recall. And, if not, there is still all that fun bit.

Try not to think about it. If you overthink it, you tend to make that spectacular misthrow, that wonderful mishit, that errant miscatch. Give it a wee bit of thought, but preferably before the play even begins. Keep your eye on the ball. Know what you need to do, how you need to field the ball, where you need to throw it if it happens your way. And, if you’re at bat, just hit the damn thing. Not every at bat is going to result in a power hit to the outfield, the long ball, the homer. Some aren’t even going to make it to the outfield. But, no worries, the object is not to hit it far, not to whack it out of the park. The object is to get on base. Doesn’t matter how or if it is done in a less than spectacular fashion. In fact, most infield hits are the ones that succeed in getting you to first base. Once you’re on base, then you can focus on making a visit to all the bases, making it home, scoring a run. Not really up to you but dependent on the batter(s) behind you to move you about. Again, no real thought, just run after the ball is hit. Key word is after. If you try to make it further before the ball is hit, you will be forced to vacate the field, return to the bleachers, sustain an out.

But all you need to do to get the ball rolling, is to make it safely to first base. Again, doesn’t have to be in a spectacular fashion and the odds are better for scoring a run if you go further on a single hit, but it is not a necessity. A single will work and each step after that is one more closer to home. Just get there and leave it to others to move you further about. Enjoy your stay, take in the view. They say it is not always the destination but the trip. In baseball, it is more the destination and it is best not to trip. Always good to stay on your feet. If all else fails and you still want to make it past first base, then we should at least discuss dinner and drinks first.