AMERICA’S GAME — from the porch

Greetings and salutations to all of you on this glorious morning!  There’s that incredible blue in the sky again today — and at 54 degrees, it’s a little bit of a “sweater weather” kinda start to my day. It’s a good thing that my coffee is hot!

I just spent a terrific weekend with some of the people in my life whom I love dearly.  On Friday, I went to a double-header baseball game at Cambell’s Field for the winding down of the Riversharks baseball season.  Last PM, I went to the final game — such a bittersweet event since I just love baseball and am a big fan of the Camden Riversharks.

This team is part of an independent baseball league, the Atlantic League.  The games are fun, fresh, exciting — all the stuff that makes baseball great without the astronomical prices that are charged at the big league parks.  In this league, there are no million dollar contracts involved, so it’s a wonderful opportunity to take your family to the park and watch America’s game.  To me, this league is a best kept secret — baseball AND change in your pocket.  What could be better?

The game of baseball is unique to the United States.  It was created here some say by Abner Doubleday in 1839 in Cooperstown, NY.  Some now are saying that Doubleday was not even in the village in that year.  The origins of the game have been debated time and time again over the decades since.  In all of Doubeday’s personal papers, there is not one mention that he had anything to do with the creation of this sport.  As a point of interest, the game as we know it today has been tweaked and revised and updated quite a bit.  So even if Doubleday did create baseball in the 1800’s, there is no way he would recognize it as it is played today — ;D

According to the American Heritage Dictionary, baseball is described as “a game played with a bat and ball by two opposing teams of nine players, each team playing alternately in the field and at bat, the players at bat having to run a course of four bases laid out in a diamond pattern in order to score”.

Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/baseball#ixzz1YOyD9XLz

Here is my definition of baseball, “A game played by a bunch of guys on two different teams with two different colored uniforms.  They pitch, hit, catch, run and score to win the game.  It is my opportunity to have a hot dog and a beer or two while watching the action on the field.  There is a 7th inning stretch, a sort of intermission, where I have my soft pretzel.  Then everybody in the park sings “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and the games resumes till one team wins”.  Being at a baseball game is one of my life’s little pleasures.  Over the years, in terms of the Riversharks, I have not missed an opening day.  Now, I have my grandson, Bobby, going to the games and he’s been attending since he was two years old — he is now 5 and also has not missed an opening day.  I’ve taken family members to a game when they visit and the Sharks are in town.  They always walk away with a smile on their faces and a good baseball game under their belts — 🙂

Like everything else, all good things must come to an end.  The Riversharks season ended at 8:34 last evening.  I will spend the winter months just waiting to get an EMail notifying me of the next opening day at Campbell’s field.  It will help me get through the cold, snowy days — 🙂  In the meantime, we have another local team — maybe you’ve heard of the Philadelphia Phillies??  LOL!!  Anyway, with a bit of luck and good karma, we will be enjoying baseball well into October.