I am a Philadelphian, for the most part. I was born there, but I really only lived there for 6 years, only the most formative years of my youth. I spent 9 more years, a few hours north of Philly, in a region evenly split between Philadelphia people and New York City people. However, that split shifted as I lived there. More and more New Yorkers arrived, and today it's a pretty solid ex-NYC region. Given it is equidistant to both cities, during the pre-cable/internet days you had a choice of which games you wanted to watch on TV or listen to on the radio.
Of course, I opted for the Phillies. Not really a popular choice in my high school, but the team was amazing during the late 1970s. Even if they didn't win a World Series until I'd left for college, their teams were always in the mix. My father-in-law sent me this article, knowing my penchant for all things Philadelphia (I married into a Yankees/Mets/Giants family - talk about mixed marriages!).
The one memory my father loves to share about baseball is related only tangentially. He had taken the family to Germany so he could attend a conference. We spent the last 3 days in Hamburg at the Hotel Intercontinental. I was getting the International Herald Tribune each morning, early, before anyone else was showered and ready for the day. I had to see how the Phillies were doing. They were about to make the playoffs for the first time in 26 years, after all. For me, it was an experience I had to indulge as fully as I could. I couldn't watch, or listen to, the games. We were too busy, but I was thinking about it constantly.
I had hair just above my shoulders, probably was about 5'2" and skinny as a rail. My father and the others had finally come down for breakfast and were greeted by me, running through the lobby waving the paper, my hair flowing, yelling "The Phillies clinched! The Phillies clinched!" I didn't care where I was. This was IMPORTANT. I know he caught the looks of others in the lobby. I didn't. I was in the moment.
The only sports I follow with any regularity now are tennis, football (college and pro) and college basketball. The other seasons are too long. I'll take in a live game if I have an opportunity. Generally, I will wait until the playoffs. Then I have an interest, even if my teams haven't made it. Tennis is always interesting - every event is a "playoff". I do not run through hotel lobbies, excitedly, anymore. Lobbies tend to be where I meet traveling work acquaintances or get ready to take in vacation days. I will still talk about sports, if I can, in those lobbies, particularly if it is playoff time.
Playoffs have intrigue, history, and a sense of renewal. Doesn't really matter which sport. The playoffs, barring strikes or other events, happen with regularity and consistency. They are a story of their own. and they always feature the best players or teams.
There is something refreshing, even when I travel, to be able to watch sports as the author in that article had. I've followed baseball from afar, taken in rugby matches, soccer (football - World Cup) matches, even hockey while I traveled. I thought Field of Dreams was a tad hokey when I watched it the first time, with my father. I noticed he was emotional at the time. Today, I get it. There is something about renewal in sports. There's connection. A shared experience. A love for something that, in the grand scheme of things doesn't matter, but matters intensely while it is happening.
