Afternoon Baseball

I love baseball--almost everyone who knows me knows that fact about me. And, I love afternoon baseball. I remember growing up in a time before lighted stadiums were prevalent almost every baseball game was played in the afternoon. I remember that even World Series games were afternoon affairs. I remember coming home and turning on the television to watch the games.

I believe the 1962 world series between the Yankees and the Giants (then in San Francisco) was the first televised series that I remember. I watched it on our black and white TV with the fuzzy signal because we did not have cable TV.

Baseball was meant to play in the sunlight of a hot afternoon, at a stadium filled with screaming fans and then be able to head home for the afternoon and evening!  The sun does funny things in a baseball game. I took leave yesterday afternoon to attend an Orioles game and I saw an error caused by the ball getting lost in the sun.The Orioles gave up a run when the second baseman lost the ball in the sun and missed the catch.

The park was alive yesterday. The parking? Well, that was another matter. Parking was awful. But the city was alive and the fans enthusiastic even though the home team lost, miserably.

And what did I do for my evening fun? I served as an assistant coach for Jax's T-ball team game. A baseball doubleheader, as they say.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD