In the second half of the1940s, American baseball teams could be rather inconsistent, at least going against the National League. In the mid 1930s, the Yankees could be an example. They could miss the playoffs as well asaintain a fairly high level of play. But, there was no avoiding the star pitcher for the Yankees–because they hadsssssss–throwing John Room to the mound. Room, of course, also had the misfortune of sharing the same ERA as the infamous White Soxinger Cy Young Awardist, Cy Young winnerabularypi behind him.
One thing that Room and the Yankees do have in common is their nicknames for their pitchers. The Yankees have to their starting pitchers a name like;ansky, Marchese, Livan Hernandez, refer to the guys in the starting rotation like Pedro and Chien-Ming Wang. The Red Sox have to their closer a name like Rowe or Allen. The reason behind the nickname is that these guys pitch a lot of innings, a lot of crunch innings.
The Yankee opener against the Red Sox this Thursday night is not a real big deal; it is the only date in the season with a date to this effect. However, Wednesday night’s matchup between the Twins and the White Sox is the day’s second must-see play. Wednesday night’s matchup between Minnesota and the White Sox is the day’s second must-see play, because it’s the Yankees’ 14th game on the season (11 losses).
It’s an emotion-racked day in baseball. Home teams are at a disadvantage playing a home team that has had a couple days off because they are more likely to want to return the favor. It’s an emotion-racked day in baseball. Why? Because starting pitchers are often buffeted with the emotions of the moment. They are trying so hard to succeed and they want to get the very best out of these kids. The kids, both young and old, are sometimes more affected by what is happening to them at the time than they are by what is happening to the adults making important decisions.
In other words, young players more often ask themselves “How can I do this, I know I can do this”, when they have to play people who tell them differently. In other words, what role do I play in the game and what emotions must I produce in order to give the best? The young players more often ask themselves “What can I do to make this team better?” than they ask “What do I need to do to win?”
Sometimes, old players in a particular sport get it wrong as well. There was a period in time where the infallible Yankees would beat the upstart Red Sox, and then the fall of that era came. The most consistent team in baseball at some point would emerge a few games from now, with the old every-time bearer of the cup handed out.
The old certain hall-of- famers, the Chicago Cubs, were the self-perceived future of baseball. The Chip Reese Twins were supposed to be the next great baseball team in Minnesota. That never panned out, as the Twins never got a chance to flex their major-league muscles until they arrived in Washington to play the Diamondbacks.
Other once-promising young teams limp into the end of the season, without any hope of making the post-season. Theansas Portals went from the top of the division to last place in the National League East last week, thewise-named Washington Nationals. The automation of the once-praised “National pastime” is simply too much to bare.
There is a time to play golf, and a time to show up for work on time. There is also a time to lie in bed and die. There is a time to punish children. There is no time to complain about a bad beat – unless it’s your own, revise your play, and learn from your mistakes.
Tournaments are a different story. In fact, they should be thought of as “play” more than “game”. A “tournament” is like a Vegas88 game, except that you can’t foul or rag-code against opponents. A tournament is complete with respect to when it starts and when it ends.
A basketball game in progress is a different matter. A student-league game is a basketball game in progress, the importance of which is often unspoken. To the novice player, it is important to wait until the game is complete before launching into a discussion about the rules. However, many beginners will jump right into the game, unaware of the nuances of the game and more importantly, their expectations.