New to Baseball (Questions, etc)

[John Price]

Kruk and Kipe and Glen Kuiper and Ray Fosse and Jon Miller and Dave Fleming and Vince Cotroneo and Ken Korach are all GOAT

 

[Ceremony]

Family and access to playing it as a kid. It was the sport I was first thrown into playing and I was raised hearing legendary stories about the exploits of my grandfather...I'm sure 70% of them were pure garbage, but some I got verified by third parties...local sandlot legend and ringer for company baseball teams, was offered a contract by the Pirates in 1927 but declined it because his mother didn't want him traveling around because it's "not safe" (ughhhhhhhh), was coached by and then befriended Honus Wagner, and then ultimately died from lung cancer from spending a lifetime doing odd jobs in steel mills...good call, great-grandma!

I was a mini baseball historian as a kid, way more into the old timey stuff than the modern game, which was probably a good thing considering my first baseball memories are from 1993.

Is it any real surprise that my favorite Simpsons episode is 'Homer at the Bat'?

Did he befriend Cap Anson or Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown?

 

[SJSharksfan39]

Kruk and Kipe and Glen Kuiper and Ray Fosse and Jon Miller and Dave Fleming and Vince Cotroneo and Ken Korach are all GOAT

The Bay Area is so spoiled with the sports announcers. Now that I've listened to many other announce crews in Baseball, I agree that the Bay Area has it awesome. Kruk and Kuipe are the best TV play by play/color guy in the business.

 

[EpochLink]

I became a fan when the Blue Jays were really good back in the late 80's, from there I watched guys like Mattingly, Brett, Henderson, Canseco, Griffey Jr, Ripken and others later..

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Grew up watching the Expos with my dad. Started playing when I was 5 and played until I was 13. Still play for fun with friends.

 

[Shoeless Joe]

I was a bigger fan when I didn't realize how random and lucky winning the World Series really is.

I'm interested in why that makes you less of a fan.

 

[Power Man]

Watching baseball is great when Melatonin stops working

 

[darko]

Played baseball and softball as a kid.

 

[darko]

Watching baseball is great when Melatonin stops working

Watching Spurs does the trick for me.

 

[Tony Romo]

cause of this guy

 

[IU Hawks fan]

It was the 1st sport I played growing up and the only sporting events I went to for the 1st 7-8 years of my life. Just has always been a part of me, and while hockey has surpassed it by leaps and bounds as my favorite sport, and I enjoy watching football more than it now (I just can't watch random games with teams I don't care about during the season like I can hockey and football), I still consider it to be my 2nd favorite as it's my favorite to play, the most interesting considering how it's so much different than any other American sport, and since it's such a huge part of my summer.

 

[Colt 55]

I grew up in St. Louis. Baseball is a way of life here. I was lucky enough to be alive for the end of Jack Buck's era, that man alone made thousands of little boys in the St. Louis area idolize the cardinals. I got to watch Albert Pujols the majority of my life and that certainly made becoming a baseball fan a lot easier, but if I did not live in St. Louis I would probably not be a baseball fan. Winning tradition is probably what made me a baseball fan

 

[TheDanceOfMaternity]

First sport I played in the mid 90's. Dad is from Seattle and a lifelong mariners fan. They also actually had good players back then.

 

[Power Man]

Watching Spurs does the trick for me.

They are still more entertaining than baseball : there is running, no steroids, no spitting, no standing around for 3 hours, no fat players (ok Boris Diaw is kinda fat)

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Did he befriend Cap Anson or Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown?

No, but he did earn an equally random nickname that I've never been able to figure out...Soapy.

My grandfather was known as Soapy. Yep.

 

[DaveG]

No, but he did earn an equally random nickname that I've never been able to figure out...Soapy.

My grandfather was known as Soapy. Yep.

Pitcher? cause yeah that would make sense if he was.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Outfielder, actually.

I'd like to think it's because his jersey got so dirty after a diving catch, but who knows. All I know is that it was one of those nicknames that eventually took over as a first name, he was simply referred to as 'Soapy'...which, to be fair, is an upgrade over Alvin. Hell, my dad had a similar thing (also an Alvin), with the more typical baseball nickname of 'Babe'.

I was so closed to being Alvin, III...thank you for vetoing that, mom...though I can't help but wonder what my nickname would have been...hmmm...

 

[LeBlondeDemon10]

My dad played in the Browns/Orioles organization in the early 50's. Got up to class B and ran into a racist manager; my dad was Canadian. After this manager made a few despicable remarks about a couple of Cubans on the team and called my dad an effing Canadian, my dad threaten to beat him to death with a bat. He was quickly demoted and retired soon after.

 

[weaponomega]

Because of this game:

 

[542365]

Because of this game:

Oh man.....the nostalgia.

 

[SPV]

I think it started watching my brother play, he was four years older than me and was very good and I remember when I was 7 & 8 he made all-star teams that always played very deep into the summer.

That and growing up watching guys like Jim Rice and Fred Lynn, and Dwight Evans and Carlton Fisk. Going to Fenway, soaking in the experience and beauty of it. I think it's something that you can appreciate even as a young kid. We were fortunate to have some connections that allowed my parents to take a family of six to many games.

Then being a stat-head, and falling in love with stratomatic, and later microleague baseball, and then finally realizing a true stat-head dream like OOTP baseball.

Now that I'm older, I can still appreciate the simplicity of the game, the sounds and atmosphere sitting in the park on a nice summer day. It really hasn't changed any since I was a kid. Same equipment, same uniforms, same ballparks.

It's a game that transcends generations. In many sports I believe that as our athletes have grown bigger and stronger, they are better than prior generations; but in baseball, I can believe that guys that were great in the 40s and 50s would still be great today; maybe not on the same level because the talent is deeper now; but their talent would still be evident.

 

[BPR*]

I remember Ken Griffey Slugfest for the N64. In a full season, everyone's stats would be pretty normal, but Griffey would hit .450 with 95 home runs and three hundred RBI.

 

[542365]

I remember Ken Griffey Slugfest for the N64. In a full season, everyone's stats would be pretty normal, but Griffey would hit .450 with 95 home runs and three hundred RBI.

Yeah they made him over the top in that game.

 

[Bizarro Bandwagoner]

Just grew up going to games and family members playing catch with me and then Little League and playing with friends after/during school. It's not my favorite sport but for a lot of people in New England, the Red Sox are by far above all the other teams. I guess you could say I was brain washed into liking it.

That being said, it's difficult for me to sit through an entire game on TV until October. The pace has gotten way too slow, especially the Red Sox/Yankees games.

 

[AdmiralsFan24]

Because of this game:

Oh man. I got that game for my birthday one year. Second best birthday present ever, koosh ball will always be the best.