For the 100th episode our podcast, we listed off 100 reasons why baseball is the best. Today, I give reasons 1-50. The first two are the most impactful for us, but after that the numbers don't really mean anything.
- There is so much to explore.
- The unique, personal relationship between each fan and the game.
- Unifying force in our family.
- Bond between fathers and sons, sharing the successes and failures of the game together.
- The ballpark ("Way better than Disney" - John)
- Ballpark food
- Baseball's constancy. During good and bad, it's always there.
- Complexity. GMs with Ivy League degrees can't figure it out.
- History. First World Series was played in 1903, while the NBA Finals started in 1947 and the first Super Bowl was 1967.
- The Hall of Fame matters.
- It's hard to casually like baseball, which minimizes fake fans and hot takes.
- Games aren't a production; the game play speaks for itself.
- Baseball on the radio.
- Makes for a great companion through life as you weave it into every day.
- Pace of the game.
- Variety of ways in which a player can succeed. Tony Gwynn could hit any pitch, while Ken Griffey looked for a ball to drive. Nolan Ryan overpowered hitters, while Greg Maddux outsmarted them.
- No time limit.
- Baseball's reach. Hundreds of teams are scattered across the country.
- Generational. The sport must be passed down to younger fans and players.
- Overlapping fan bases. In Champaign, we have Cubs, White Sox, and Cardinals fans.
- Numbers. 140 years of data in box scores, standings, records, and so much more.
- You can't hide your weaknesses, no matter if you're a player, broadcaster, manager, or fan.
- The feel of the bat and baseball in your hands
- Intensity of late-game situations
- 9th-inning comebacks
- Mind games between batter and pitcher.
- Painting the outside corner with a fastball and hitting a line drive to the opposite field gap.
- Your team going first to third on a base hit with one out.
- Batter getting the job done when everyone knows what he needs to do.
- A well executed suicide squeeze
- Seeing a great hitter versus a great pitcher four times in person
- Bunts against the shift
- Home runs that leave the stadium
- The backdoor curveball
- Walk-off hits
- Home run robbery
- Mike Trout
- Clayton Kershaw
- Sandy Koufax
- Lou Gehrig
- Greg Maddux
- The hyped prospect
- Jackie Robinson
- Tony Gwynn
- Bo Jackson
- Ken Griffey Jr.
- Left-handed power hitters
- Unathletic players
- Specialists (LOOGY, pinch hitters, etc.)
- Michael Jordan. The best basketball player ever took two years of his prime to play baseball.
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