Hayley: I want to talk about baseball, a subject that I have been moderately interested in for years, but because the White Sox are doing very well AND I am on that never-ending quest of finding things to talk about with my dad, I have recently gotten VERY into baseball. Victoria has always been a huge Mets fan, and I am excited that we have yet another thing to text about.
During a normal year, I might end up at one or two baseball games throughout the course of the summer. For some reason, this year, I have already been to four. My friends and I went to games on two Saturdays in June, first a Cubs game (they lost) and then a Sox game (they also lost, prompting my dad to say my friends and I are no longer allowed to go to games.) My dad and I went to Baltimore in July purely to see the Sox on the road at a park that neither of us had ever been to, and it was one of the best trips I've ever taken. Last week, my family went to a Sox game that ended up being the one where Seby Zavala hit his first career home run, then his first career grand slam, then another home run, and wow, I will remember the energy in that park for the rest of my life.
This is the first season that I have actively enjoyed sitting down to watch a full game on TV, and now I'm hooked. I love learning the rules, the strategy — all of it! As someone who loves games and rules, when I realized that you can keep score of games on your own in a little scorebook, I got very excited. I promise I am a fun person, but my dedication to forcing my loved ones to play games with me is probably my most annoying trait. I am going to try and channel that energy into baseball now, you're welcome.
If you are already a baseball fan, I'm so jealous of the years you've racked up being dedicated to this sport. It's fascinating to me that I could get invested so quickly in something so new to me. I am excited to enter this new phase of my life, the Baseball Bitch phase.
Victoria: A lot of people (mostly men) hate when people (especially women) only start rooting for a team during their good season. "They're just the bandwagon," they say. Then in the next breath they wonder why more people don't like baseball. These people are obviously idiots. Of course more people like the team when they're good!! The team's job is to keep these people around when they are not as good. I am happy you have found the White Sox under these particular circumstances. I loved the Mets from when I was a kid because it was force fed to me by my family, but I only made it something I actively loved in 2006, when they were maybe the best Mets team ever (they lost to the Cardinals in the playoffs; I'm still very bitter). And when they went on their improbable 2015 World Series run (October 2015, take me BACK), they brought in lots of fans, many of whom have stuck around. I love and cherish these people! (Though I do feel superior to them.)
Let's talk about what's good about baseball. First off, I love anything that's hyper local. Technically baseball is national, but with rare exceptions the guys on your team are only famous in your city and with your fans, and that's a very special and fun and kinda geeky relationship. Like I would die if I met Pete Alonso and most people reading this newsletter probably don't know who that is. I honestly don't even know that many White Sox guys. And even guys who are super famous in baseball are kind of anonymous to the rest of the country.
Baseball is also, I think, very capital-R Romantic. Former Mets pitcher and Cy Young winner RA Dickey (one of the only recent knuckleball throwers, so you know he's fucking cool), wrote in the foreward of Stacey May Fowles' wonderful 2017 book Baseball Life Advice about how baseball is a sport where missing the ball seventy percent of the time and hitting it thirty percent is not just considered good but exceptional. Batting .300 (which means you get hits roughly thirty percent of the time you go up to the plate) is really hard!! Basically hall of fame stuff! Baseball is about failure. It's about playing every inning like you might win, but knowing you will probably lose, and doing it anyway. That rules.
Baseball is basically math come alive (this is what Moneyball is about), but what I like about baseball is it isn't just math. Everyone is on a trajectory, and then the trajectory changes. A guy who can't get a hit to save his life hits the game-winning home run. A guy who's had a great career so far just can't figure it out right now. It hurts when you're on the losing side of the baseball magic, but you can't deny the magic exists.
Hayley: I could truly read your writing about baseball all day long! I think there is a lot of poetry in baseball.
As someone who has tried and failed to get into other sports, I have narrowed in on what makes baseball the superior sport:
1) All the points are the same. One person crosses home plate = one point. You don't have to do any math to figure out how they got there! Sure, you might look at the score and go "did we get 3 home runs or 3 RBIs? Or a combination?" But the scoring is SIMPLE and EASY TO FOLLOW. The points don't change based on where you are standing when you throw the ball, which I truly hate about basketball for no real reason other than it does not have to be that way. Hitting a home run is hard, but it's the same amount of points as someone who simply rounds the bases and scores— there is a balance to baseball scoring that I love. Plus, think about football: if you see that a team has 6 points, you have to be like did they get a touchdown and miss the extra point? Did they kick two field goals? Football is a menace for many reasons, the scoring is one of them, and it's egregious, but it's not even the worst thing about football. Obviously soccer and hockey are in the one score = one point arena, but my god, three hours of my life for a game to end with a score of 1-1?
2) Baseball is the most stylish sport. They wear belts! These are professional athletes who buckle a little belt on their uniform before every game. It cracks me up; I can't get over it! Moving aside from belts, I have realized that baseball is really all about accessorizing: belts, hats, helmets, gloves, mitts, shoes, headbands, necklaces. The whole uniform simply lends itself incredibly well to letting players customize their look. Just look at this photo of Yoán Moncada, my favorite White Sox player (because he is the cutest, which, honestly the whole team is very attractive so he's in good company):
I know that some clubs have rules on facial hair, like the Yankees, because Victoria told me about it. But honestly, I love looking out over the field and seeing which of the players prefer the full-length bootcut pant look or the pants-tucked-into-socks look. It's fun!
3) The season is long and there are many games. This could be seen as a downside, but I love it. It spans half the year, and there is most likely a game on if you want to watch it. It is great to have something to do on a weeknight when you want to watch TV but are not invested in a movie or new show. In this way, I like how unfussy and unspecial baseball is. With football, it's like a Huge Deal on Sunday and you have to be so invested in Game Day. Basketball moves so quickly that if you leave to get a snack and come back, suddenly there is a 30 point difference and your team is losing. Baseball is slow, deliberate, and interesting. Plus, it is much more accessible (usually) to go see baseball games in person. And the environment of being at a game is unparalleled, sports-wise.
Victoria: These are incredible points. On the topic of accessories, I am always thinking about this photo of Andrew McCutchen:
A large chunk of my favorite baseball memories involve former New York Mets third baseman David Wright, who became my favorite player basically the moment he was called up. In 2006, he hit an iconic walk-off single against Yankees closer Mariano Rviera, and he basically skipped up the first base line as he watched the ball fall over Johnny Damon's head. It always makes me smile.
The Mets 2015 run is even more special to me than 2006, because it was pretty improbable! David was out with injuries for a good portion of the year (he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis, which eventually forced him to retire), but when he returned in late summer, he hit a monster bomb at Citizen's Bank Park (where the Phillies play). He also hit a homerun during the World Series (which the Mets ultimately lost, but still an iconic moment to me!!).
Hayley, you root for a team that has pitched 20 no-hitters, including one this year. For most of my life, the Mets had pitched zero no-hitters, despite being the long-term home of some of the greatest pitchers of all time. That finally changed on June 1, 2012, when Johan Santana pitched one. I was eating dinner at the home of my friend and fellow Mets fan Sarah Kaplan, and we watched the latter innings with her parents.
But honestly a lot of my Mets memories have basically nothing to do with what was happening on the field, which was, more often than not, quite bad! I remember my dad stopping at Subway to get us all sandwiches to bring into Shea Stadium. I remember my little brother getting his leg stuck in the stadium seat when he tried to climb over it. I remember the little animation on the Shea Stadium scoreboard when Masato Yoshii was pitching. I remember all the times we stopped for Italian ices on the way home.
What's nice about going to a baseball game with friends (as opposed to any other sport) is that it's, as you pointed out, extremely chill. Other sports have a much more limited number of games, so tickets are more expensive and harder to get and everyone is more intense about the experience. But baseball games are bountiful. You can sit around and talk bullshit with your friends and no one will complain. You can get up to get all the good food. You can eavesdrop on any terrible men sitting near you. We're here for a good time.
What Hayley Thinks You Should Try
- I cannot get over how good Parm Crisps are. There are also good knockoffs at your local grocery store, I guarantee it. They are perfect on salads and good right out of the bag.
- My colleague Ashley has an online store with a ton of cool products, I recently bought The Manifest Journal because my life feels insane and I needed a guided journal. I love it so much, and I'm only like three days deep! It also comes with a little affirmation bookmark that I keep nearby.
- My other colleague Chelsea has a super fun Bookstagram account, Chelsea is Reading, where she shares bujo layouts and romance novel recommendations. I highly recommend following, it's always a bright spot in my feed! (And yes all my coworkers are cool, JEALOUS?!)
What Victoria Recommends Right Now
- No Jack Antonoff discourse, but the new Bleachers album has been on repeat in my headphones.
- Read One Last Stop! It's good!
- I'm obsessed with these Mamma Mia! candles.
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