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Friday March 29th

Spring brings the best sport — baseball

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By Kalli Colacino
Opinions Editor

Most people think of spring as a time for vacationing, relaxing and cleaning. But when the season approaches, there’s only one thing I think of — baseball.

Hitting a baseball is one of the hardest skills to master in sports (Envato Elements).

As Andy Williams once said, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” But, no, it’s not Christmas time — It’s baseball time. Now that football season has come and (thankfully) gone, we can now focus on the superior sport.

The end of February brings warmer weather and, most importantly, spring training. On Feb. 21, the first spring training game was played. It’s a day that avid baseball fans have been waiting for since last October. And although baseball season hasn’t officially started, the beginning of spring training means the first day of the season isn’t far away. This year, regular season games start on March 26.

There’s nothing better than sitting in your favorite ballpark — hot dog in one hand and a beer in the other — watching your favorite team. And if you’re lucky, your favorite team is the New York Yankees. Because let’s face it, 27 World Series rings can’t be beat. But if we can’t agree that the Yankees are the best team in baseball, I hope we can agree on one thing — baseball is the best sport.

Major League Baseball has been an American symbol since 1903, when the first World Series was held, according to history.com. Ever since, baseball has been a staple in American culture.

There is nothing quite like witnessing a baseball game. The best part is when your favorite player comes up to bat and sends a baseball into orbit. Or when your team’s right fielder gets a runner out at home with one swift throw straight to the catcher — as Aaron Judge has demonstrated many times. The accuracy, strength and talent it takes to be a baseball player is like no other.

“I think without question, the hardest single thing to do in sport is to hit a baseball,” said Ted Williams, a veteran baseball player.

The extreme level of talent and skill it takes to be a Major League Baseball player is why baseball is the best sport. Now, I’m not saying football players aren’t talented, but the skill it takes to stand in a batter’s box and hit a 95 mile per hour fastball is like no other.

To witness a baseball player’s talent up close is surreal. Some might say that watching a four hour baseball game is the most boring thing in the world. But when you’re an avid baseball fan like me, who could watch a 24-hour baseball game and not be bored for even a minute, four hours isn’t long enough.

Baseball, unlike football, seems easy to watch. There’s a batter in the batter’s box and a pitcher on the pitcher’s mound. The pitcher throws the ball to the batter, and the batter hits it. It sounds simple, but it’s anything but simple. After watching baseball for years, I know how complex the sport can be. There are so many variables and possibilities — the best part is anything can happen.

One of the most fascinating parts of baseball is how smoothly the players work together. If you’re watching football, you’re most likely watching a bunch of guys chasing each other on the field. Baseball, however, runs like a well oiled machine. Each player on the field works together to accomplish the goal of getting the opponent out, and it’s hypnotising to watch a 6-4-3 double play. This play occurs when a ball is hit to the shortstop, who throws (or flips) the ball to the second basemen, who retires one runner and then throws the ball to the first baseman to retire a second runner. The amount of skill and teamwork it takes to pull off a double play is truly impressive. 

Baseball’s regular season consists of 162 games for each of the 30 MLB (Major League Baseball) teams. Football, on the other hand, only consists of 16 games for each of the 32 NFL (National Football League) games. This alone makes baseball the superior sport. There’s just so much more to it, and those 162 games don’t even include spring training or the postseason.

No matter which team is your favorite, you should agree with me on one thing — baseball is the best sport.




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