The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

[Armor and Sword]

Hello my fellow brethren of Operation Sports.

I love baseball. It is a huge part of my life and my family. A few years back I did a similar thread and read some incredible stories and picked one out and the one I found that touched me the most and I sent a standard copy of the game.

I am doing it again. Tell me what baseball means to you. It is my pleasure to give a copy of the game away to someone.

If an admin needs to PM me please do so. You know I am good for it.

This Show Forum needs some positive vibes. I love this game and I love how SDS replicates it.

So post away. I will pick a winner (and everyone is a winner for sharing their story but there can be only one copy given away) before release and you will receive the game by the second week of April at the latest. I am heading out on March 24th for a family vacation. But will send the game out by April 2nd or 3rd at the latest via USPS Priority Mail.


Deadline for your story is no later than March 22nd and I will announce the winner and PM the OS member to get their mailing info.

[Skyboxer]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Don't need the game but figured I'd post.
For me Baseball is about new beginnings as well as remembering the past.
It certainly has put some marks in my life growing up.
From LL to High School then adult league with my father as coach.
Baseball will always have a strong presence in my life.

As James Earl Jones said in Field of Dreams
"America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time."

[KBLover]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Baseball was the way I could open up and be social to kids when I was one myself.

I wasn't shy, per se, but I rarely shared many common interests. Back then, avid video gamers weren't the norm, even for kids (they were into starting dating or other "going out" activities).

So when I started exploring baseball and baseball cards and going to card shows, I got more connected to the game and exposed to some of the history. I remember buying a Rickey Henderson rookie card because he was my favorite player at the time (I always seemed to gravitate to funky/finesse pitches and slash-and-speed type hitters).

Then I started collecting avidly. I started learning players by organizing cards into teams, learning basic stats, what the players were good at. As fate would have it, I started getting a lot of Red Sox cards and managed to collect a team set just from buying random packs. So I started being a Red Sox fan. Of course, that was 1986. Of course, we know what happened to the Red Sox in 1986...Welcome to baseball, kid.

Anyway, becoming a card collector started letting me talk to other kids about baseball and baseball cards. I would do some trading, make some baseball friends, talk the game and teams, etc. And when we played, we talked about our own play. I remember one friend telling me to try to bat right handed (I'm a lefty), and, for whatever reason, that let me hit and was natural like I was a right-handed hitter. So I became a LHP and a right-handed hitter.

Baseball was like a whole new world for me. I really got totally absorbed both so I could keep up with my newfound friends and talk baseball on and off the diamond, but also to learn about this quirky game I've taken a liking to and enjoyed playing. I would try teach myself a delivery and batting stance by trying to copy the deliveries and stances in Bases Loaded 2. I would try to emulate funky pitches like the knuckleball, palmball, screwball (I used to have a good one for my age) and forkball. I watched every game with Hough, Glavine or Key on the mound, three of my favorite pitchers because they were like me - they didn't throw 95 MPH like Clemens. They wanted to make the ball bend and locate and change speeds. I could do that in my own small way.

Baseball was my gateway into sports and into the "real world". I still adored my video games (now including baseball games - hence the special place in my heart for Baseball Stars, Tony LaRussa baseball, and the Front Page Sports games, the latter two starting to expose me into the stats and "guts" of things like roster building and how lineups were made).

But baseball introduced me to something else I could do and "show the world". Baseball got me into football and hockey as now I found I loved sports. Baseball let me make friends easier, either from talking about play or about stats and arguing about which of our favorite players was better.

As such, it's just one reason why I will always love the game. Even now, I can talk on here about baseball and baseball games and sabermetrics, letting me make more friends still. As I keep learning more about the innards of the play on the field, the tactics, the data/analytics, the scouting and player evaluation - it just makes me respect and love this game more and more.

All because I started collecting a handful of baseball cards. Who would have guessed.

[eric7064]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

It all started for me in the fall of 2003 (I am 22). I was 8 years old at the time, and all I cared about was Pokemon, Power Rangers and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I heard my mom and dad talking about some big sports game and I did not care at all. It was nightime, and my bedtime was approaching. Sadly, for my 8 year old self that was 8pm.

Some dumb baseball game was on, It was the Cubs and Marlins in some big series. I guess the Cubs were bad and hadn't won in a few years. I came up with a brilliant plan, everyone I knew seemed to be invested in this game. Maybe If I acted invested, I could watch it as well, and stay up late. Bingo! It worked. My mom had no problem with me watching history. This was the night of game 1.

Fast-Forward one week and its game 7. I am shattered. I feel like a Cubs fan. I fell in love with not only the game of baseball, but sports. Beforehand I had no idea what an RBI was, what a batting average meant. Now I want more.

The 2004 season came, and I never have looked back since. I watch almost every Cubs game possible. I traded those Pokemon cards in for every baseball card pack I could find. I began collecting like crazy. Memorizing the stats on the back of these cards. My dad soon called me Rain-man when it came to statistics. Whenever we would go to a game he would ask me exactly what a players #'s were and I would reel them off with ease.

I wanted to understand the game more. Thankfully, a game called MVP05 was out. I loved it. Again memorizing every player. Playing this helped me learn and understand the game. It was not just for baseball, I became an avid Bears & Irish fan as well. Madden & NCAA helped me understand and learn the sport.

I soon began to play baseball for the first time. The pop of the mitt, the smell of the mitt & dirt, The crack of the bat, the beautiful scene of the diamond. I loved playing. Opening day of little league was the best day. I remember "interviewing" myself each year pretending I was an MLB player, any year I was on a new team I pretended I was traded.

It is now 2018, I witnessed my team win the ever out of reach World Series. The best moment of my life.

Opening day is rolling around again. My absolute favorite day of the year. There is no other feeling like it. Just to think it all started one fall night in 2003. I remember it as if it was yesterday. And thats how the magic of baseball changed my life.

[countryboy]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

As some here probably know from me saying, my Grandpa played catcher in the Cardinals organization back in the day. He never made it to the bigs, but his tales of playing the game while we were growing up help instill the passion I have for this sport.

Baseball was also just a family sport so to speak. My cousins and I played. We would have our own type of spring training before Little League where my Grandpa would put us through exercises to work on fundamentals of the game. From hitting practice, to pepper, to fielding fly balls, to have hard ground balls hit from about 20 feet away, we learned to play and excel at the game.

Besides my Grandpa, my Dad and Uncle were involved in my playing of the game. My Dad and Uncle coached me from T-Ball throughout my entire Little League career. I can remember my cousin and I riding in the back of my uncle's old pickup truck to practice. Dad would meet us there after work and practice would take place. After practice Dad and I would ride home together discussing the day of practice, school (when in session) and just life.

After Little League, I played High School ball and College ball. My dream was to make it to the majors, but that didn't happen. But that's ok. My time playing the game will always be cherished memories for me.

Now as my Grandpa has passed, my Dad and I are working with my little guy, instilling the game onto him. He won't be forced to love it, or like it, but I do hope he will at least try it.(He's 2 1/2 right now). But he has taken a liking to it. He loves to bat (don't we all) and he loves to play catch, although if he drops one with his glove, he throws it down and tells me it doesn't work. He enjoys watching the game with me and I try to keep things simplistic as I explain what is happening. This year, he will be old enough to attend games and have some understanding as to what is going on. But Daddy isn't foolish, he knows to bring plenty of money for concessions to keep him content while we watch the game.

I wish my Grandpa was alive to help instill the love of the game onto my son. He died several years prior to my son being born. But me and his Grandpa will be sure to fill him in on this great game. Whether he takes to it like his Daddy did remains to be seen, but he's showing the interest. I really look forward to coaching him with my Dad during his Little League career. And hopefully he'll have the passion and the ability to play it at the High School and College Level. And who knows, maybe short guys will be a new wave of the future of Major League Baseball and he can play professionally.

And with any luck, he'll have a son that he will instill the passion for the game just as his Dad, Grandpa, Great Grandpa did for him.

[Arod2k9]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Born in the Dominican Republic [emoji1091] in 1980 all I heard was how to get to New York City. I heard it all that money comes from the sky as the rain does and so forth. But for us the quickest way to get to USA was through baseball, it was every kids dream to make it. I have vivid memories of 1986 Houston Astros and New York Mets highlights but not from actual video but from kids trying to imitate what they heard in the radio the night before.

Baseball is in my blood as my father won batting titles in the Southern region of DR from 1972 -1975 and has told me the story that LA Dodgers sent scouts to sign him. He declined as he felt MLB players didn’t make much and he took his talents to music. He did come to Long Island, NY by 1981 and always send my twin brother and I all the World Series champions T-shirts back to DR. I have pictures in 1982 of Philadelphia Phillies 1980 and 1986 Mets as my favorites.

I always played baseball on the streets even with a made up ball sock and rock inside but I never played it to make it. It was always fun times and never look at it as my savior in life. At best had I played organized ball in high school I would of never be the hitter and SS or 2B my father was. My favorite player of all time is Don Mattingly fittingly since I arrived to NYC in 1990. I imitated him everyday on my afternoon of baseball fun. But honestly I thank my father everyday for instilling baseball in me and I’m fine with it. Baseball is the only sport you can go and relax for conversations to with people you love.

Lastly, even after my fathers declined offer to join Dodgers organization my brother and I were destined to live in Los Angeles. Life is funny at times and baseball will always be part of me and my family. My first son is due at any moment and his first shirt is rookie of the year my wife got him as a tribute to Aaron Judge!


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[a bit outside]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

My journey started back in Missouri in the 50’s. My great grandmother was a huge baseball fan and she never missed a Yankees game on the radio and later on the television. We would gather at her home on Sunday for fried chicken dinner in fear that if the Yankees started a game before she had dinner ready that dinner would not be finished or burn the house down as great grandma was going to leave the kitchen and sit in front of the radio/tv until the game was over. Thankfully, my grandma or my mom would pinch hit and finish dinner.

I grew up a baseball fan, but my loyalty was with the Cardinals. Which made for some really tense situations back in 1964 as the Cardinals and the Yankees squared off in the series.

She passed away shortly after that after battling a long illness and never got to see me play Little League. I continued to play the game I love and listen to the Cardinals and Harry Caray on KMOX radio.

I played through elementary, junior high and high school. I moved to Texas and played in some city leagues until I was 40, my body was starting to let me down and a career move helped me to quit playing.

I managed to pass my love for the game down to my wife and three children and we enjoy going to Arlington to watch the Rangers and we like going to Frisco to watch the AA Rough Riders. The wife is a Yankees fan, one daughter is all about the Rangers, the other is a Cardinals fan and by son bleeds Royals blue. They all have children and some of my grand babies are playing the game now.

Over the years I have been privileged to watch some of the greats. Stan Musial, Mickey Mantle, Bob Gibson etc. I have been fortunate to watch games at a wide variety of parks. Seen the A’s in Kansas City and Oakland, the Cardinals in three different parks.....all named Busch. The Rangers at old Arlington and Globe Life......hopefully I can watch them at the new park they are constructing now.

Baseball has a very long and rich history and I feel blessed to have been able to witness some of it.

[My993C2]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

I did play some hardball when I was young, I even tried playing some rec hardball as an adult (that was a tad scary as the pitchers were some what wild, didn't know if I should be swinging or ducking) and of course I have played co-ed softball in the past which was also fun. But I was never really a big baseball person. Compared to some other sports, it is a rather slow, drawn out game. However with all that said, the MLB The Show game (which I have been playing every year since 2012) turned me into a baseball fan and it also taught me a lot about the game that I perhaps never really knew or caught on to in the past if I ever did try and watch a game on TV. Oh and I have also watched a dozen or so MLB games over the years live, but I was usually too busy drinking and socializing with the people I was with and not really watching the actual game. So yeah the MLB The Show game, complete with all it's warts turned me into a baseball fan.

[Caulfield]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Already got my All Rise steelbook & cap edition reserved AND paid, in full. Still, I cannot resist posting here. But with a slight twist: What the Show means to me -----It means re-living the greatest seasons of my youth through classic historical 1980's era rosters.
It means being able to temporarily escape the lunacy of bosses, religion, politics, scatterbrained women, nosy neighbours, noisy children, & my idiotic, football-following brethren from my fair state, Alabama. Most of whom dont follow baseball & wouldn't know the difference from Jose Altuve to Jose Ramirez to Jose Abreu to Jose Bautista to Jose Quintana to Jose Urena to Jose Canusee. & I can get that escape for less than 20 cents a day, an escape cheaper & healthier than I used to get from alcohol, sans the Show.
Thank you San Diego. Stay classy.

[JoshC1977]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

I took a college course as an elective called the "History of American Baseball". The course wasn't just about the games themselves (i.e. not just about stats) but rather the "Story" of baseball.

My "take home" from the class....

Baseball is one of many lenses in which we can view history. It is a microcosm in which we can view society. Baseball is history and history is baseball.

[hyacinth1]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

When I was growing up in the 80s baseball was America's game. As a kid, all we did was play baseball in the summertime. Every kid in the neighborhood would be at the park every summer to play baseball. Day in and day out. It was part of childhood and part of the culture. Our parents didnt need to watch us because they knew where all the kids were and what they were doing.

And we all watched baseball and knew about baseball 24/7. As kids we could name you every player on our favorite team and every player in our league. And league's were very important back in those days. They were really 2 different organizations. I would root for the NL in the WS if my team wasn't in it which was all the time. And Opening DAy, the All Star Game, and the World Series were must watch tv. No questions asked.

When the strike hit it was pretty much the end of the romance of baseball for me and many others of my generation. That was devastating. I remember the first ASG after the strike I think was in Philly, I didn't even care. I could not believe it. It was so not fun to watch. Like the players even knew it. It seemed like they were playing with no passion for the game. And at the same time, NFL became king. It was the better product. I pretty much stopped following the game after those strike years. I would have a passing interest instead of being such a die hard fan.

Then something funny happened to get me sort of back. I think it was 95 playoffs Seattle and the Yanks Game 5. I wasn't really paying any attention to the game. It was just on the tv to have something on the tv on. Then I think in the 9th, the Mariners won it on a hit and Ken Griffey scored the winning run sliding into home. The last play of the ball getting hit in the gap, griffey rounding the bags from first, and a bang bang play at the plate with him sliding in safe reminded me that NO OTHER SPORT had magical moments like Baseball could. I wasn't even a fan of the Mariners or Yankees. That was the start of bringing me back.

Then the Home Run Chase in 98 was really huge. We all knew something was fishy but we didnt want the feel good chase to end. I remember there was a reporter that discovered a body enhancing substance in McGwire's locker. I knew what that meant but I remember saying to myself, NO, who cares, forgetabout it, just let the guy break the record. Don't tell me he cheated. I 'm not hearing of it, no way. Complete Denial.

Because of life, I didnt follow as closely in the 2000s except for those 2 years the Cubs got close. Then my interest was rekindled when the Cubs rebuilt and paid off in that World Series championship.

At this point I think i'll follow baseball because of the teams involved and the stars. Sort of like the NBA. I don't have time in my life to be so die hard as I was when I was a kid. But that's enough for me.

[TheBleedingRed21]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

I grew up in a sports orientated family. We loved every sport. But the sport that I have the most memories from? Yup, baseball. Baseball has provided a lot for my family, and not in the way it has for the professionals (monetarily). I grew up with my Dad coaching our team, from T-Ball to Middle School, he was my coach. Baseball not only taught me the love of the game, but truly showed me the kind of dad I had. My dad worked full time as a project manager (engineer) and was very busy, but as I played through High School, he never missed a single game of mine. If I wasn't playing, it didn't matter, he was there. Baseball helped show me how a father should be.

I also remember the late nights at the ball field at the local field. I made tons of friends and we used to goof around while other teams were playing their games. My mom worked concessions so I got to be around ball fields all my childhood. From actually playing to sitting in the stands and running around the fields, baseball provided my life with much excitement that most kids never get. I got to experience the world of baseball through All-Stars. We got to travel and just hang out in hotels after practice, just like the pros. As a kid, this was the life.

Now that I am a dad myself, I think back to how awesome it was knowing my Dad was always there and my #1 fan. I cannot wait to show my two children the same love and share with them the game that I love. The biggest impact baseball had on me? Finally understanding the father son bond that I took for granite as a kid.

[billyo]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Let me break this up into 'phases'.
Phase one: falling in love with the game.
I am in my late 60's so I have a lot of memories but I will be brief. I have loved to play and watch baseball for 60 years. Yes, I am still a kid at heart!
In the late 50's and early 60's, I was a Dodger fan, most notably Snider, Koufax and Drysdale. I lived for the Saturday afternoon game of the week. Announcers such as Dizzy Dean, Pee Wee Reese, Curt Gowdy were great. I remember Dizzy saying 'he slud into second base.' English teachers did not like Dizzy but we, as kids, loved him. Watching Mays, Mantle, Gibson, Musial were the golden days. Great times! Still think Mickey Mantle may have the best ever had he not gotten hurt. My favorte World Series to this date, was 1960 between the Pirates and hated Yankees. If you do not know what happened in that one, look it up.

Phase 2: playing as a kid
I played 'choose up' games every day I could as we did not have the structure of today organized teams. We also did not have enough 'white guys' in our town to field 18 players so we would get together with the 'black guys' to have games. No fighting, no racial tensions, just guys playing a game we all loved. These were the 60's so racial things were going on, but not in our little world. If I could go back in time for just one day to play, I would choose to get back on the mound and throw a few innings against some of my childhood friends, a few of which have passed.

Phase 3: coaching
I coached youth baseball for 12 yrs back in the 80's. I loved teaching the kids the fundamentals, playing the game the right way, and stressed that they were making memories and friends that would last a lifetime. One of the kids, who was a year older than my kids, was a tall lanky kid who always wanted to throw batting practice. Of course, I welcomed this kid anytime, BUT little did I know he would one day pitch for the Atlanta Braves. This kid was Kevin Millwood, and he would later go on to pitch a no hitter in the bigs for the Phillies. As he stood on the mound in Bessemer City, who would have guessed he would one day pitch in Yankee Stadium, Wrigley, Fenway etc. A deserving person, I might add.

Phase 4: Still loving the game in my later years
I am a CPA and had a tax client a few years ago named Ted Abernathy. Ted played MLB before most of you were born. He was a tall sidearmed pitcher who played for several big league clubs. The last time I chatted with him (he was ill, and his memory was going), I asked him who was his toughest 'out' as a pitcher. Ted said 'Ted Williams'. His dear wife said "no Ted, you did not pitch against Ted Williams but you did know him. It was Willie Stargell and he wore your butt out!" We laughed and that was the last time I had the pleasure to speak with him. I still have the signed baseball card he gave me.

Baseball has been, and always will be, special for me. Just thought I would share a few memories. I hope you enjoyed.

[KingV2k3]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Spitball Timeline Highlights:

1) Willie Mays biography, courtesy Schoolastic Books

2) Topps Trading Cards, circa late 60's early 70's

3) NBC's Game of the Week, featuring Curt Gowdy and Tony Kubek

4) Hank Aaron's record setting HR, recorded on cassette from broadcast TV

5) The Sporting News / Box Scores / Stats

6) Strat O Matic Baseball

7) Rawlings Mel Stottlemyre lefty glove, eventually upgraded to MacGregor Willie Mays model

8) Backyard / Pickup Games ALL spring and summer long

Jump to:

9) The 7th inning stretch renditions of God Bless America during the 2001 World Series

10) Ken Burns' Baseball Documentary Series

11) MVP Baseball 2005

12) "Ball Four" by Jim Bouton

13) MLBTS

Honorable Mention: This thread!



What it means to me?

Not unlike music, ever ready access to instant nostalgia and timeless history.

[SFNiners816]

Re: The Magic Of Baseball and What it means to you.

Living my entire life (38 years old) in the Midwest, baseball means that winter is just about over. I played it growing up and still play softball to get my stick and ball game fix😊.

However, when I think of baseball I’m instantly transported back to my childhood and watching my cubs on WGN. Getting to watch my favorite guy (Sandberg) and those cubs teams of the late 80s. Just so much fun. I was too young to really know the ‘84 cubs team (I was 5) but the ‘89 squad was right in my wheel house and even with the 2016 team winning the WS, the 1989 cubs is still my all time favorite team as it featured my guy (Ryno). Hell, I still scour YouTube for cubs game from that year.

I guess that what baseball means to me is forever being able to tap into the feeling of my childhood. For that reason, I will always be grateful for baseball and will always be happy that companies deliver games that allow me to replicate baseball whenever I want.