Baseball is a sport I have never understand, but am learning the inner workings of the sport quickly. I summarize baseball as a sport that requires the batter to hit the ball, the other team tries to catch the ball, and the batter runs around the bases trying to reach home and score. It is a very rudimentary understanding of the sport many people LOVE.
Kelly Gallagher, a high school English/Language Arts teacher and author, states that baseball spectators like me miss A TON of the details that take place during every baseball game. In Gallagher's book, Deeper Reading, he describes his experience watching a baseball game with his young children.
"I was seeing things on the field they were oblivious to. I saw the catcher peek into the dugout for a sign from the manager, which was then relayed to the pitcher. I saw the center fielder realize the catcher was setting up for an outside pitch, so he cheated a few steps to his left to get a jump on any ball hit to right field. I then noticed the base runner on first base look to the third-base coach for a secret sign to see if he had permission to try to steal second base. This made the shortstop and second baseman nervous, because if that runner were to attempt a steal of second base, one of them would have to cover second base and catch the throw from the catcher. Yet, they didn't want the hitter to know who would be covering the base, because he might try to hit the ball through the hole left by the covering fielder. Therefore players have devised a secret sign, which they flash (and change) just before every pitch. All this, and more, occurs prior to every pitch. In other words, there are many games within the game of baseball. My daughters, sitting right next to me had no inkling of these other moves. They watched and "understood" the game on a surface level while I watch and understood the same game on a much deeper level. We watched, and yet did not watch, the same game."
In the above scenario, I am one of Gallagher's daughters. I understand baseball on a surface level; however, I am learning. I checked out Baseball for Dummies from the public library. Although, Noah has read more of the book than I have. Go figure...
In the end, I show up to each practice and game willing to learn a bit more about this summer sport. More importantly, the kids are having fun, they are learning to work as a team and are establishing some solid friendships that may last a lifetime.
