With the change in weather we”re experiencing, in addition to seeing Christmas displays popping up at various retail stores, it”s clearly October. And that means it”s World Series time.
Most people who know me know I don”t really pay attention to sports. But I have always enjoyed sports, both participating in them and watching them. By far, I”ve always had a soft spot for baseball, especially at playoff time.
Growing up, I was pretty much how I am now: tall and lanky. That left me open for playing two sports growing up: basketball and baseball.
I started playing Little League baseball when I was 7 and continued to play until I was 16. Those 10 years were some of my most formative and I spent a lot of it on the baseball field. I”m a lefty, so I was eligible to play fewer positions. I started in the outfield before transitioning into a first baseman around age 9. I pitched my first game at 10 and fell in love.
As far as speed goes, I was a much slower pitcher than many. As I got older, my fastball”s top speed was somewhere around 80 miles per hour on a good day. But I had a mean sinkerball that often fooled batters. My pitching style caused many batters to ground out. I was fortunate enough to win the vast majority of the games I pitched from ages 10 to 16. I often had dreams of becoming a major league pitcher one day.
Growing up in the East Bay, I often took BART up to see A”s games. It was during the mid-90s when the A”s were very hit-and-miss, so I saw them win and lose equally. The one-and-only Giants game I”ve ever been to was in 1998. Believe me, the lack of Giants games I”ve attended is something I”m not proud of and am intending on changing next year.
When the A”s were having their playoff runs in the early 2000s and during the magical post-season the Giants had last year, I would have done damn near anything to be at any of those games.
I don”t think I”ve ever been more on the edge of my seat than watching those Giants games with my friends last year.
Watching the A”s try, and fail, to beat the Yankees two years in a row firmly established a hatred of Fox Sports anchor Joe Buck and of the Yankees. Witnessing the Boston Red Sox make possibly the greatest comeback in baseball history to defeat the Yankees for the American League Championship in 2003 was one of the best things I”d ever seen. After they won the World Series, I didn”t think anything would ever top it. Watching the Giants last year definitely topped that in my book.
I may have fallen out of baseball after I broke my arm and fell in love with both music and playing in bands. But, come October, the sort of well-hidden baseball nerd in me comes out.
I”ll say this right now: If the Tigers defeat the Yankees, I will be rooting for them all the way. I may not be able to go into detail about player stats or even know many of the players” names, but my passion for baseball lies deep. Play ball.
Kevin N. Hume can be reached at kevin.n.hume@gmail.com or call directly 263-5636 ext. 14.
