Baseball Zen
2025 marks the year I went from a casual baseball fan to a fanatic.
I have always loved to watch baseball - even back in the days when the game was not on a timer and they could sprawl into 4+ hour events.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my team and the lessons my Boys in Blue have taught me this year. As we round the bend toward the end of the regular season now is the time for these reflections to cross home plate.
My mama grew up playing softball and some good times involved getting to watch her play on her softball league when I was growing up. If I wasn’t busy chasing my hermanitas around the pitch I would catch glimpses of her catching or batting prowess.
I never played, though I would have loved the pageantry of it all. The costumes… the props! I did have a glove and sometimes Dad and I would play catch in the backyard, but more often than not my brother and I would take turns launching the ball as hard as we could at each others’ heads.
I can still remember the snap of the ball hitting my hand through a mitt.
I can still smell the leather.
My family, with origins from Kansas have always been Kansas City Royals fans.
I was inducted into the Royals fanbase as a wee one.
And I’ve never strayed.
I remember the George Brett era - and used to collect his memorabilia. I remember the fanfare Bo Jackson earned when he became a Royal.
Baseball was often on the big tv at our house especially the national games when we could catch them. It was always on at my abuelas and my Tía Lilly’s too.
When I went to the University of Kansas for undergrad I would often spend summers or at least part of them in Albuquerque with the fam. When it was time to head back to campus Dad and I would take in a Royals game when he would drive me back to Lawrence.
One time we were laughing so hard in the parking lot after a game where we beat the Yankees. Kauffman stadium went all out and we laughed heartily because it was August and the Royals fandom were acting like we just won the World Series. Fireworks y todo!
But, given the Royals stats over their lifetime, we do really need to take the wins when we can get them.
I have seen many games at the K with family and friends. And I have weathered the ups and downs of the Royals - let’s be real, mostly the downs - my entire life from a pretty casual distance.
But this year, something shifted. Vaimo and I headed to Target Field for our now second annual gathering with her sisters and niece and nephew to catch a Twins v. Royals match up in May. The Royals won! And afterward Vaimo and I started watching every single Royals game we could courtesy of MLB and a shared password from Hermana and Babu!
It has been a true joy and delight to see Vaimo become a Royals fan. She can now name the batting rotation and pitchers. She knows so many players and has her own thoughts on their strengths and weaknesses. She’s given players her own nicknames and is a major contributor to the baseball group chat. She’s still learning how to weather the losses (we’re out of the playoff run officially) and the heartbreak that is the plight of the Royals fan.
I was inspired to share my baseball story because my painter friend Ali Liebegott wrote an extensive love letter to their favorite team - The Mets on opening day this year. If you’re a baseball fan it’s worth the read, email me if you want the link because I think it’s behind the paywall now and I have some gift subscriptions I can send your way for a free trial situation.
Unlike Ali, I have not (yet) formed a romantic attachment to Slugger (the very cool lion king mascot of the team) as she has to Mr. Met. It truly is a great and unhinged read.
But back to me and the lessons from the 2025 Royals season. Here are some things that have kept me enamored all year in no particular order (except the first).
Salvador Perez is a joy to watch, and the fact that he as a Venezuelan national was able to show up, play in front of a predominately white crowd in our current political era with a smile on his face as ICE terrorizes our communities inspired me to keep showing up as authentically me in my rural, conservative reality.
The cult of MLB is inclusive! And I’d be remiss to not mention the MANY Latin American players the Royals have on their starting roster especially during Latinx Heritage Month! The strides the league has made in embracing Latine players also remains inspiring in our current political era.
Just to keep on this topic, besides the Phillies Karen (who was BANNED from their stadium for life) most of the time baseball is a place where even if you show up in the visiting team’s outfit you’re still treated kindly and with respect. Where else can people rise above such stark differences reliably and with kindness besides a baseball stadium?
With 162 games in the regular season, spanning 6 months of playing time, baseball is a commitment! A marathon, not a sprint. But it also means against all those matchups the team and fans must constantly wrestle with what it means to win or lose. Goldfish memory! If you have a bad game (day) just show up to the next one without letting the past take you down. Show up to the next game (day) and try your best!
Something we’ve really noticed at the ChicFinn is that the Royals play better when they’re visibly having fun. Smiling, cracking jokes with each other, other players, coaches, fans, the umps. Every time the pressure got to the Royals they’d crumble. But when they were having fun, they pulled off plays that made it clear their purpose was aligned with their actions. More fun is a lesson I want to carry with me into my studio for sure!
Baseball encourages male intimacy and healthy masculinity that is special to witness. Of course there are fights and challenges and bad moods, but for the most part - a good (well loved player) knows the privilege it is to play ball for a living. If we could all be so lucky.
“You can’t sneak a piece of cheese past a hungry rat.” Rex Hudler (IYKYK)
Today marked the last day of the regular season and the last game Vaimo and I were able to watch of our favorite team. We ended with a winning season (barely) with 82 wins and 80 losses. What a wild ride.
I was even so inspired by the baseball lifestyle, I painted a Royals pennant into a painting that will debut in my upcoming Duo show that opens November 4th.
So, if you’re into that sort of thing…mark your calendar for the opening reception November 6th at the Kaddatz!
Enough about baseball, the paintings are calling.
-KCF