Read the opposing arguments from Sports Geek and Bleacher Fan.
Walt Whitman once said, “I see great things in baseball. It’s our game – the American game. It will take our people out-of-doors, fill them with oxygen, give them a larger physical stoicism. Tend to relieve us from being a nervous, dyspeptic set. Repair these losses, and be a blessing to us.”
His deep reflections on this simple sport are as accurate as they are well articulated. Baseball is a thing of beauty. America is truly blessed to have such a sublime sport for its national pastime.
As millions of families gather together today and give thanks for the many blessings in their life, one blessing I will remember is baseball. Even though the New York Yankees did not win the World Series, and the 2010 season saw the loss of one of the most iconic figures in all of sports history – “The Boss” George Steinbrenner – this season proved, as always, to be a thing of beauty. It reminded me why, as a grown man, I love a child’s game so very much.
Perfect In Its Imperfections
The 2010 season was the first to see two perfect games in the same season, those of Dallas Braden and Roy Halladay. Shockingly, it came remarkably close to seeing three.
Aramando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers pitched flawlessly through 26 batters. He had a perfect game going through 8 2/3 innings. All indicators pointed toward perfection, and he was just mere pitches away from joining the most elite company in baseball history by pulling off the rarest feat in the Bigs. Fate had different plans for Galarraga. On the last out of the game he was inarguably robbed of immortality by umpire Jim Joyce.
This was a travesty that could have been worse. Arguably the worst blown call in baseball cost Galarraga his shot at immortality. This could have invalidated the sport. This could have driven fans away in droves. Instead, fans were treated to a bittersweet ending, an ending which highlighted the human aspect of the sport, but more importantly ended with a story of forgiveness and redemption.
Jim Joyce, the 22 year veteran and consummate professional, did the unthinkable. He did what no one dreamed an official or anyone connected with professional sports would ever do. He admitted he was wrong.
With a tearful confession and a heartfelt apology, Jim Joyce set things right. He avoided a potential disaster for MLB and instead restored faith in the game for many. For stories like these, I give thanks.
A True Team Celebration
I was similarly blown away by the thoughtfulness of the Texas Rangers clubhouse in celebrating their post-season advancements. When the Texas Rangers clinched the America League West crown they celebrated in typical fashion with a champagne free-for-all in the clubhouse. This was an unforgettable night and deserved an equally unforgettable party, but one man was unable to partake in the festivities.
Rangers sluggers Josh Hamilton, who struggled mightily to overcome his history of substance abuse problems, chose to be elsewhere. While he was no doubt as excited as his teammates, his self-imposed lifestyle restrictions left him out of the party. But when the Rangers advanced, the players didn’t make that mistake again.
Instead the Rangers showered each others with ginger ale, a touching consideration for their valued teammate. This type of camaraderie is not often displayed in professional sports, but special moments like this renew ones passion for baseball and for that I give thanks.
Miracles and Heroes Abide
Without a doubt, the thing about MLB I am most thankful for is the fact that heroes and miracles still survive. Baseball has had some serious PR issues over the past three decades. From the strike to The Steroids Era, there were plenty of reasons to look down on baseball. But there are still players and stories that keep the legacy of the past alive.
Perhaps nothing is more touching to me than the story of players who hit homeruns on command for a sick child. This seems to be a folk tale from a bygone era, but amazingly it is not. As recent as the 2009 season Brett Gardner defied the odds and did exactly this. Making it all the more improbable is the fact that Gardner did it with an inside the park homerun.
A special young girl in need of a heart transplant asked Gardner that to hit a homerun for her. She even told him that she had been praying he could do it. He wasn’t supposed to be able to do it. He wasn’t a bruising slugger, and he wasn’t even in the lineup that night. But due to an ejection of the left fielder and a miraculous hit Gardner was able to live a story that even Disney could not have even imagined.
It’s so very refreshing to hear good news about a sport and see there is something worth being fanatical about.
So, amidst all the turkey and even the football, I stop to give thanks for baseball, and the great American legacy it continues to build.
Former San Francisco Giants third baseman, Al Gallagher once said, “There are three things in my life which I really love: God, my family, and baseball.” I am inclined to agree.
Posted by Babe Ruthless 
