Wednesday, July 11, 2018

Fun


Even the way George Carlin talked about it, he knew what baseball was supposed to be. More light and carefree. And yet today, on July 11th, I couldn't disagree with him more.

My team, the New York Yankees, are currently 28 games over .500. A great season. Not a good, but a great season. They are going to the playoffs, at the least in a one game playoff, supposedly with the Seattle Mariners. And yet sports radio this morning is talking about the Yankees panicking and fans panicking....

The reason for this is that the Boston Red Sox are having a even better season and the Yankees are 3.5 games behind them. If one wins the division they get to avoid the one game playoff and go directly to the ALDS.

And thusly, Yankees fans and media are panicking.

And to them I say.... SHUT THE FUCK UP.

We're 28 games over .500. HAVE SOME FUCKING FUN.

This season has not been any fun at all. It really hasn't. When the Yankees lose games, it's armageddon. When they win games, it's "yeah but......"

It's ridiculous and it really sets me off.

Baseball has almost become a nightly ritual with me. After work you cool down with something and baseball/sports is there to fill the void. But when nothing good or nothing pleasurable comes out of it, what's the point of doing it? Unless I find something else I feel that I will be irrevocably drawn back to baseball and this pit of misery.

And the media perpetuates this misery because they want viewers/listeners. And nothing sells more and gets more attention than negativity and conflict. Why do you think the TV news is so chock full of it. And because the Yankees are at the very least going to make this one game playoff, there is no drama or conflict to talk about. So they try to pump conflict in by making the difference between the division title and the one game playoff basically life or death. Do or die. And it makes it intolerable to listen to.

At times, I hope to God that I find something else. But inevitably I will probably become obsessed with that too, and perhaps bored. But it's getting to the point where I am going to have to find something else. Because while baseball is meant to be fun and light as Carlin pointed out, this has become misery and despair. And I can't take it much longer.