What a wonderful time of year. There is a chill in the air, the colors in the trees are as varied as your toddler’s moods and there is baseball being played under the still warm afternoon sun. Major League Baseball games, once played primarily during the day, have long since abandoned their core daytime audience – kids – and now schedule 95% of all games during the evening. Sure, the primetime slots maximize ad revenue but those late games have done more to hurt the sport then most folks realize – as most of today’s youth would name another sport as their favorite. Baseball may not even by the national pastime any longer and that is sad. Many young children are not able, nor should they be allowed, to stay up until midnight to watch the end-of-game drama. Luckily during the early rounds of the playoffs, games are scheduled at 3pm and 6:30pm Eastern Time allowing families to watch games together and still get to bed at a normal hour. Baseball is a magical game of nuance, patience and strategy and while many consider it the most boring of the major sports, true fans can point to the drama, teamwork and never ending scenarios in an attempt to prove that baseball remains the most complex and fascinating game on earth.
October playoff baseball provides the platform to spend a late afternoon with your children, explaining the subtle differences in defensive positioning when a power hitter is at the plate versus when the speedy leadoff man digs into the batter’s box, or just laughing at the antics of the colorful mascots like the big fluffy green Philly Phanatic as he taunts and puts hexes on the opposing team from atop the dugouts.
So do what I did yesterday – cut out of work, pick up the kids from daycare or school a bit early, snuggle up on the couch and turn on our original National Pastime during the dramatic playoffs (Philadelphia Phillies vs. Colorado Rockies today at 3pm ET on TBS!)
Even if you are new to the game, the announcers will guide you through what is taking place and hopefully give you and your family a new appreciate for an old game.