Fall classic time once again.
Can you smell peanuts in the air, old neat’s-foot oil softening the leather for just the right amount of give in the glove, the sound of a dead ball hitting a piece of wood- that familiar ‘crack’, real spike cleats just ready to lay waste to a convenient shin, some children, mostly in pigtails, wondering where they are and why they aren’t in school, father hoping son will ascend to a professional mound one day, grounds that have the slightest marbleized appearance from fresh chaw slamming from the mouth as if with a purpose, the sound of resonant wood as a discarded bat hits the pile of bats in front of the dugout and the afterward ‘rolling tappet sound’ as the bat finds its way to the ground striking many others along the way down, woolen uniforms that look clean, and in good shape, from 50 yards out, but up close reveals the ever so subtle stubborn stains of red Georgia clay and nicely crafted repairs from a day’s past battle, the town championship team and the most prosperous business locally is one and the same- congratulations to Active Brother’s Creamery recent win over arch rival Thomas’s Livery 4 to 2.
So many sights, sounds and history of a great, great game as it used to be played.
Now, we have humungous stadiums costing millions, player’s salaries, staff salaries, equipment costs and this is just on the expense side of the ledger as but a few examples of a game that looks different in many ways, but remains simple. It has one simple goal, and I am surprised how many folks do not know what the actual objective is within the game. Everything about the game, all those enormous sums of cash coming and going, is centered upon this one goal. What is it?
Here is what Wiki thinks it is, which is technically wrong.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baseball
Play ball………………. 