By SILVIO CANTO, JR.
It started out as interesting, watching game #7 of the Pirates vs Orioles in the 1979 World Series. Or watching Reggie Jackson hit three home runs in game 6 of the 1977 World Series. Or crying once again when the Texas Rangers could not close the 2011 World Series with one strike to go in the 9th and 10th innings.
But now, let me confess: I am tired of watching old games.
Baseball finally got its act together and announced that games are coming. This is from MLB.com:
“Major League Baseball has officially announced a plan to return to play that features players reporting for training by July 1, leading up to a proposed 60-game, regular-season schedule anticipated to begin on July 23 and 24.”
“Major League Baseball is thrilled to announce that the 2020 season is on the horizon,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.
“We have provided the Players Association with a schedule to play 60 games, and are excited to provide our great fans with Baseball again soon.”
A 60-game season is different, but then, everything about 2020 has been strange.
After all, it was just four months ago that Texas Rangers’ fans were looking forward to a beautiful new stadium with a roof for Sunday afternoon baseball in July and beyond.
Well, we won’t be going to that stadium anytime soon, but baseball is back.
The 60-game season will have an asterisk much like 1981, which was literally broken up into two seasons, first half and second half.
Who benefits from a shorter or more compact schedule? I don’t know.
Baseball is a long marathon, where teams have many winning and losing streaks. A 60-game season is just 37 percent of a regular campaign, so unusual things may happen.
But let’s play ball. Of course, let’s hope that CNN does not go “breaking news” with a rope found in any clubhouse, especially Oakland.
Silvio Canto, Jr. is a Cuban-born U.S. citizen who teaches English at a north Texas college. He is the author of the book “Cubanos in Wisconsin” and has a daily online radio program and blog dealing with U.S. and Latin American politics, as well as sports and historic events, and is a regular contributor to American Thinker.
…June 26, 2020