Play Ball

For some reason, my body chose to wake up this morning at the hour of 7:30 this morning. On a regular Wednesday, I probably wouldn't have cared so much. It's usually an early day since I have to go in for work at noon instead of two. But today the day is mine because I had vacation time to burn before my anniversary, which is technically tomorrow. What better way to spend those last couple of hours to give myself a three day work week.

Which is exactly why one would not want to be up so early when one does not need to be. But it all worked out because I came to the conclusion that has slowly been realized over the past couple of months.

I love sports.

Though I know it's probably time to leave the Bay State, being here has been responsible for so many positive things in my life. Chief amongst the many plusses is probably learning to truly remember and enjoy. And being sucked in to Red Sox and Patriot nation helped rekindle the flame that was once much more passionate. It's the only way I can explain sucking in SportsCenter, the televised broadcast of a sports radio show, and the first parts of the ESPN version of the Today show.

Sons usually derive their interests from their fathers. When I think of it, my father had few interests or hobbies in life. There is photography which I have a passing interest in, but every Sunday I know I was watching the NBA all the way back when Dick Stockton was calling games for CBS. And that's probably where the seed took place.

Seeing that I devoured whatever reading material was in our house, the Sports Illustrated subscription for Dad also benefited me, and not just the annual swimsuit edition. Mom picked up on this and moved me from Highlights for Children to Sports Illustrated for Kids. From there it was a wrap. In time, my breakfast viewing transformed from reruns of Sonic The Hedgehog and Widget to the rotating band of personalities of SportsCenter. While others were memorizing the fight moves of Hulk Hogan and the Ultimate Warrior, I marvelled at the beauty of Kareem's sky hook, even Magic's cute baby imitation. As others mastered Super Mario, I taught myself how to read the standings in the paper and compute averages, somehow nurturing my bookishness in the presumably simple area of win or lose. I drew ire from my schoolteachers not for class clownery or bullying, but rather my insistence to read the USA Today sports section during class.

That spirit developed over time. SportsCenter grew from 30 minutes in the mornng to 60 somewhere along the line and I found myself getting to school late a little more often. Basketball was my primary baptism. It was definitely my father's favorite and we both had a special place for Magic Johnson. He called me at school to tell me that he had contracted HIV and would be retiring. But even that is indicative of how I would approach sports from then on. I think that the ages of 8 - 13 are pretty important in the permanent impressions of a sports fan. This is where you are smart enough to comprehend but still young and innocent enough to be fed anything and totally believe. Since I was reading Sports Illustrated, which was national and unbiased, and also not limited to the mainstream sports, I just learned about everything. The black boy from New York City loved Magic Johnson, Frank Thomas, Emmitt Smith, Brian Leetch, and Dale Earnhardt. I skipped the Simpsons to watch Pavel Bure and the Canucks lose to the Rangers and see Mark Messier act like a loon with Lord Stanley's cup. As I watched it live, I prayed that my premonition that Dale died when he hit the wall was wrong, only to stop watching NASCAR for 5 years because of it. I make a point of watching the lacrosse championships every year, at least a half. I might buy a PSP just so I can play FIFA cause I love soccer that much.

As for my own allegiances, well it goes back to that formative period. Remember I was getting national perspective from Sports Illustrated which doesn't exactly foster any attitude except for fairness and just enjoying everything about sports. Plus the apathy of the city in general plus the dearth of successful teams didn't exactly inspire much fervor. Those Philly and Cleveland fans who dust themselves off after season with othing to show for it were indoctrinated by their fathers at that age that's who we root for. My program director is a perfect example. Raised in Connecticut till his early tweens, he was a Yankees fan. Upon moving to Massachusetts, the intense peer pressure - and boy is it intense - did not sway him to the Sox. The late 80s and early 90s were pretty quiet in New York, save for the Giants. Everybody else sucked. The Mets had lost their star players to free agency and cocaine. Donnie Baseball was the sole star on a frustrating Yankee franchise. The Knicks were ambling in the Eastern Conference. We won't speak of the Jets. Uhhh hockey what? In addition, Dad had no allegiance as a Jamaican immigrant. I loved Magic Johnson and therefore I loved the Lakers. So from then on I've been a fan of the individual athlete and whatever team he or she plays for. I hate the fickleness of it sometime. I'm jelaous of my boy Mocha and his undying devotion to anything Patriots and to a lesser degree Red Sox. Something about the commitment to heartbreak and the hope for victory is attractive. With sports, the most attractive thing to me is the game. I love to watch whatever it is I'm watching played. If I'm rooting for a team and they win, that's lovely. If they don't I still feel like I've enjoyed it. Lately I've always been pulling something new.

I think most sports fans can attest to that. It's the reason highlight reels are popular in the first place. Even though every clip is not going to include your player or team, you still watch for the simple fact that the act occurred at all and to relish it along with every one else. There is the intensity involved as well that somehow travels to the viewer. I was once so superstitious I though I wouldn't get into Duke because I didn't watch a game with my complete attention and Kentucky pulled off one of the biggest comebacks in NCAA Basketmball Tourney history. During last year's Division Series, I watched an entire Mets game from the same chair, topless, with my Mets visor cocked to my right side just so.

But there's something involved with the camaraderie as well. Though I love to highlight the individual, my favorite exhibitions are when the team works together. I liked Magic so much because he was an orchestrator. I fell in love with the Red Sox during my stay here because of the way they play, like a team. Same for the Patriots. And thank God its the same for my re-adopted Mets. I always try to teach my kids, if they feel like listening and seem like they want to understand, to share and move the ball around. I love the technique of it. I love the spontaneity. I love it all.

And the camaraderie aspect can probbably explain why I was quietly following the Mets all those years. Dad used to take me to baseball games pretty regularly, but we had no real allegiance so it was just a matter of motivation. I ended up at Shea more often than the Bronx just because of the proximity. I've known that route since I was seven (BQE to the Grand Central Parkway). I used to get excited to go to LaGuardia Airport just because I knew I would see Shea and its corny neon baseball stick figures on the walls. I remember feeling cold and distant in Yankee Stadium whereas Shea was always comfortable. Sitting on the third base line seeing Daryl Boston launch one into center left and seeing that apple rise in the outfield subconsciously hooked me. I remembere seeing Mookie Wilson stealing a base and getting all the way home on a throwing error. And something about that shade of blue with that shade of orange was strangely attracting. I recall being excited when we signed Bobby Bonilla for the largest contract ever, then being flatly disappointed when he ended up sucking. The lockout came and further eroded what had never been firmly in place. But Robin Ventura and Al Leiter brought me back with Grand Slam singles and ageless gems from the mound. There has been Kaz. But I've watched Reyes develop from a liability to a treasure and Wright being isolated that he can be the new face of baseball.

I will sally forth in my love of all things athletic. I've even become more athletic in my post pubescent years. I love it too when I get the chance. Only my insecurity in my underdeveloped abilities keeps me from going out more often. Please believe that a joy that laid nascent for a bit is fast arising again. Glad it's here.