We’re in the middle of the horror show that is the Trump presidency, renewed anger at the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of police, and, oh, yeah, a pandemic that has killed nearly 120,000 of us in a couple of months.
Against that awful backdrop, it would be nice to have a few public institutions that were stable. Instead, we have baseball.
Baseball has a long history of labor discord. Millionaire players battle billionaire owners for supremacy and more money.
They’re fighting again. This time, as always, it’s about money.
I love the game, having traveled all over the Midwest with my stepfather’s semi-pro team as a kid. He was a pitcher and a catcher with better baseball than parenting skills. Watching so much, I became attuned to the nuances of the game — and there are many. It’s a subtle sport full of context and subtexts.
Not so the business side of baseball, which is all bluster and sledgehammers. And now, yet again, we have unseemly public bickering. On and on it goes, long after other sports have worked out agreements for their seasons to be played in these strange times.
The two sides seem to be getting close to an agreement, and perhaps by the time you read this, they will have one. My question, though: When they do reach an agreement, will many people care any more?
“Against that awful backdrop, it would be nice to have a few public institutions that were stable. Instead, we have baseball.” This cracked me up so much.
Great article–thanks for the laugh!
Thanks so much. I appreciate it. 🙂