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Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Pretty Miserable Year for Baseball ...

Not that I usually pay much attention to it. I'm a team loyalist. I get interested when the Royals are doing well, and occasionally when the Cardinals or Cubs are looking good for post-season play.

I'm watching Ken Burns's documentary on the sport, and figured I'd go have a look at the standings.

In the American League, there are only two teams (the Baltimore Orioles and the Detroit Tigers) doing worse than the Royals this year.  The only bright spot is that the Boston Red Sox are in a distant third place in the Eastern Division (behind the damn Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays, a team I may go watch play next year and maybe even fall in love with) and seventh league-wide. So hopefully I won't have to avoid watching them in October.

The Cards are in better position -- first in the National League's Central Division, third league-wide, so it could happen.

But yeah, it looks like we're probably going to get a damn Yankees / friggin' Dodgers World Series. Boooooorrrrrrring.

My baseball loyalties are informed by my childhood. My first live game was in the nosebleed seats at Busch Stadium. My second was behind first base for the Royals. Then I bet a crap ton of money (some of which I didn't actually have) on the Royals in the 1985 series, and despite the umpires being completely in the tank for the Cards, won. I'll root for the Cards against anyone except the Royals or, when I'm feeling rebellious, the Cubs. I'll root for the Royals against anyone, period, and for anyone against the damn Yankees.

I've got a mild -- very mild -- weakness for the Mets, because that was my Little League team my second year, the year I made the "majors" (entirely from work ethic and not a bit from ability -- I showed up for every practice, several better players didn't; I played as competently as I could, but my best outing was a "bounce over the fence" double and I can't say I was a great asset to the team).

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