What evokes the best baseball image? Well, for me, it has to be a sun-splashed afternoon with a cold beer and a hot dog, my team winning, seemingly not a care in the world and, finally, good companionship. After last night's Ducks game, I certainly appreciate that image more and will never take it for granted. In watching a 3-2 loss by the hometown Ducks, I battled bone-chilling temperatures, a relentless wind and some pretty bad baseball.
Last night's contest was the coldest game I have ever been to. With the wind chill, the temperature at PK Park barely hovered above the teens once the sun went down. I was bundled up in multiple layers, but it didn't matter as the gusting wind off of the neighboring Autzen Stadium chilled my bones to where I actually felt an early onset of exposure. While watching the game, my shivering became unstoppable because I was so cold.
I know that I have brought this subject up in the past, but is it a good idea to play baseball in the middle of February? Especially in a northern climate like Oregon? Sure, the recent cold snap here is an aberration to our normal climatic nature, but what about in more extreme northern climates like, say, Michigan or Massachusetts. Their winters are, without a doubt, much more intense than ours. But yet, at least in the past five years or so, teams from northern climates have been very successful. Teams like Michigan and Oregon State are continually in the hunt for a College World Series, so maybe the cold doesn't affect the baseball teams as much as it affects the fans.
Either way, it was a pretty pathetic sight. For being the home opener for the number fifteen-ranked team in the nation, the grandstand was barely a quarter full. The people that were there were bundled up and shivering right along side me. But, giving credit where credit's due, the people stuck it out and, at least, made an attempt to cheer as the Ducks loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the ninth.
Now onto the actual baseball I saw. Bottom line: In my opinion, college baseball is very hard to watch and get excited for. College baseball is such a different breed of baseball from the professional game that it is astounding. For starters, the college baseball game is a lot slower. I have found that when runners get on base during the college game, the pitchers become more concerned with the runners rather than the next batter. Multiple pick-off attempts and long sets to check the runners are numerous. This inactivity makes the game long and drawn out and diminishes some of the excitement which makes baseball so special. Maybe it was just the early season, but the pitchers for both the Ducks and their opponents, the St. Mary's Gaels, unnecessarily would prolong the game with four-to-five pick-off attempts per batter. Considering the extreme cold, this made watching the game nearly unbearable. I can only imagine the havoc this caused with the players not involved with the pick-off plays.
The conclusions I draw from tonight's game are very interesting. It is important to point out immediately that I still am pleased PK Park and all that it has to offer, even without the Emeralds playing there. But, I think baseball, with the exception of Spring Training, should not be played in February, especially in northern climates. Finally, college baseball just does not cut it in my assessment of the game I love.
In little less than a month, I will be flying to Arizona for the Cactus League road trip. There may be a few more Ducks games I go to in the interim, but the countdown begins in earnest now for the Cactus League. This road trip has been constantly planned and prepared for the past five months. I started the initial research and development when the Spring Training schedules came out in early November 2010. This is going to be one of the most action packed road trips I have ever taken, and it excites me like no other. I will write out the specifics of the trip in the pre-departure blog entry in a few weeks.
Always take on a 3-0 pitch ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment