October Around the Corner
It's the end of September and that means the regular season of baseball is coming to a close... And what a close it's shaping up to be.
The Brewers and Cubs are keeping everyone on the edge of their seats in the race for the N.L. Central. Even if the Cubs do clinch (which could happen as early as tonight with a Magic Number of 2), it'll be a wild ride in the NLDS.
But it's also interesting to look at what else is happening throughout the league. The Cubs just got swept by, of all teams, the Florida Marlins, who have one of the worst records in all of baseball. That just goes to show that some of these teams that are out of it still have a lot to play for, and they're not playing under pressure, which is ending up working to their advantange. They're just there to entertain the fans, and maybe make a push for a pay increase next season.
But there's other stories too. For example, Barry Bonds will not return to the Giants, yet *thinks* he can get a job with another team (I'll believe it when I see it, but hope I don't).
But the story that I think is really cool is what's going on in Houston this weekend. Craig Biggio is going to be retiring and will be behind the plate catching for the first time in 16 years. I think that's pretty sweet that a player has an opportunity to go back to his roots before he retires. Even as a Cub fan, this is one of those players that make you more of a BASEBALL fan.
When we went to the Brewers/Cards game in August, Robin and I wore our Cubs shirts and it was fun to hear all of the comments that people had to say to us ("Hey! You're at the wrong game!"). But what was cool was that, in their inflection, you could tell it was all in good fun. Sure you'll cheer for your team, but what's awesome is the fact that, especially in those kinds of situations, you can tell who the BASEBALL fans are.
No matter what happens in the first few rounds of the playoffs, I'll still watch the World Series. I'll still watch the All-Star Game next July, even if Lou isn't managing the National League club. I'm a baseball fan, and October is just around the corner... Now's when it counts...
The Brewers and Cubs are keeping everyone on the edge of their seats in the race for the N.L. Central. Even if the Cubs do clinch (which could happen as early as tonight with a Magic Number of 2), it'll be a wild ride in the NLDS.
But it's also interesting to look at what else is happening throughout the league. The Cubs just got swept by, of all teams, the Florida Marlins, who have one of the worst records in all of baseball. That just goes to show that some of these teams that are out of it still have a lot to play for, and they're not playing under pressure, which is ending up working to their advantange. They're just there to entertain the fans, and maybe make a push for a pay increase next season.
But there's other stories too. For example, Barry Bonds will not return to the Giants, yet *thinks* he can get a job with another team (I'll believe it when I see it, but hope I don't).
But the story that I think is really cool is what's going on in Houston this weekend. Craig Biggio is going to be retiring and will be behind the plate catching for the first time in 16 years. I think that's pretty sweet that a player has an opportunity to go back to his roots before he retires. Even as a Cub fan, this is one of those players that make you more of a BASEBALL fan.
When we went to the Brewers/Cards game in August, Robin and I wore our Cubs shirts and it was fun to hear all of the comments that people had to say to us ("Hey! You're at the wrong game!"). But what was cool was that, in their inflection, you could tell it was all in good fun. Sure you'll cheer for your team, but what's awesome is the fact that, especially in those kinds of situations, you can tell who the BASEBALL fans are.
No matter what happens in the first few rounds of the playoffs, I'll still watch the World Series. I'll still watch the All-Star Game next July, even if Lou isn't managing the National League club. I'm a baseball fan, and October is just around the corner... Now's when it counts...