Baseball’s 162nd Game and What We Should Do About It

I’ll be honest, I woke up this morning along with most of Boston Red Sox Nation, the Atlanta Braves faithful, the St Louis Cardinal’s fanbase, and those who pay attention to the Rays down in Tampa ecstatic for tonight’s games.  I knew it would be a great night of baseball with my senses overwhelmed by the action of three simultaneous games and a fourth starting just an hour later with so much on the line.  I immediately turned to my Twitter in an attempt to share my excitement but, couldn’t think of anything to say between the sleep in my eye and the thumbs looking for words on my phone.  I knew I was going to have to write something on Off The Bench about the awesomeness that is baseball.  But, What do I write about?  It’s been hard to articulate my excitement for today’s games to other people in casual conversation today, let alone writing a cohesive, coherent article about game #162.  So, the below is my attempt to capture the essence of the multitude of storylines going into tonight and the thoughts going through many fans heads at the moment.

I could write about the game from a Braves perspective.

I could write about how Chipper Jones said last night that this has all been “like living a bad dream.”

I could write about the historic collapse of the Boston Red Sox over the past month.

I could write about the monster of a man that is Albert Pujols and his .370 average this month or about Lance Berkman’s .450 OBP in September and how that may be the biggest addition of last offseason.

I could write about how the Rays kept with it and never gave up when they had the fourth best record in the AL but managed to be some 10 games out of a wildcard spot.

I could write about a potential Pedro Martinez start in a potential playoff for the playoffs.

I could write about how said potential start would be watched more than any baseball game ever.

I could write about how Pedro would bust out the red glove and with Tek catching him, dominate an Rays lineup that can swing it quite a bit (Upton, Damon, Longoria, etc.).

I could write about who the heroes of tonight might be as Buster Olney chose to do.

I could write about the shame that befalls the Yankees and Phillies for staffing out the games with so much riding on them.

I could write about how the Braves will be without starting shortstop Alex Gonzalez tonight.

I could write about what the Yankees might do in the same situation if they were playing arch-rival Boston instead of the loveable Rays.

I could write about the potential scapegoats.

I could write about managers coaching for their jobs.

I could write about how Tony LaRussa has been rumored to be headed to the White Sox and this may prove a distraction for the young guys in the lineup.

I could write about the injury to Adam Wainwright in Spring Training and how the Cardinal’s have overcome that.

I could write about historic game #162’s that mattered.

I could write about Sean and Max’s plans for tonight (that involve a lovely six pack and a 52 inch TV).

I could write about all those things and still not talk about what I should be writing about.

I should write about the sheer awesomeness of how far the the Cardinal’s and Rays have come and how it could all be for nought. I should be writing about how this is exactly why we love baseball and why they play 162 games in a season.  I should write about how these teams play for 6 months and there’s still no telling who will win a given game.  I should write about how this is just another reason not to bet on baseball.

I should write about what we should do about all this but, frankly the only advice I have is to go out, be sure to grab your six pack, find your favorite spot on the couch, find the remote and just enjoy.  Enjoy the spectacle, the drama that will unfold in live time before you tonight.  I should write about how enjoyable this all really is.  I hope I got that across.

Stat of the Day: You can buy the MLB.tv package of the four important games tonight for only $4.  Do it.

-Sean Morash