Article: The Majesty of Baseball

[Jake McKibbin]

As a foreigner and the lone baseball fan among my friends, I sometimes find myself attempting to find ways to help them understand why it’s such a majestic sport. I’ve shown them clips of some amazingly athletic plays, but regular game cameras don’t show just how much ground is being covered, how fast the footwork is, or how fast the game is.

Image courtesy of © Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

They can appreciate that hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things to do, yet nothing after this entirely sinks in. Unless you have played the sport, it’s tough to fully grasp how challenging even the most basic throws can be. Given cricket is a much bigger sport in Ireland, and with feats like these catches to compare to (on a heavier smaller ball without gloves), baseball can be seen as inferior in some ways.

So why is baseball so beautiful? For me, it comes down to several things. I love the randomness of it, encapsulated by the fact that the Pittsburgh Pirates won their season series against the mighty LA Dodgers 5-1 last season. In so many other sports, from American Football, Rugby, “Real” football, Basketball, and Tennis, a team as comparatively poor as the Pirates would have no chance. Yet, in the fine margins that baseball operates, there are always shocks to be had; any team can truly believe they can win on a given day. It’s one reason why the postseason is so exciting, one clean swing changing a whole game, one pitch that’s an inch off target, one umpire’s decision, one call from the catcher. The difference between barreling a baseball and just missing is so minute that even the home run derby doesn’t feature home runs on every swing. We see position players getting out by throwing absolute trash at the hitters. It doesn’t matter how much you square up a ball if you line it straight to shortstop. Add in the fine margins, often a single camera frame, between being on base and a recorded out, and you see how easily a game can swing. It’s magical and highly frustrating sometimes, so the high emotions of tension-filled games can make you feel alive, living, and dying on every pitch. 

The Mets game on the 5th of April is a prime example, from going 4-1 up with your ace and Cy Young caliber pitcher on the mound to a couple of innings later finding yourself 6-4 down and potentially game over with the strength of the Mets bullpen… Jesse Winker tied the game after Luke Voit stole a base. It finished with Garrett Mitchell's walk-off home run after attempting to bunt multiple times at the start of the at-bat.

In case you need a recap from a Redditor with a fun backing track:

What would happen had the Mets allowed the double steal chance to bring Yelich home but got out on Voit at second base? Or had Mitchell got a bunt down, how does the 9th inning look? Would he have even tried to bunt when trailing by a run? We’ll never know, but the game would have had a very different complexion and probably involved David Robertson, too, had the Mets led through the 8th and 9th innings.

The complexion of a game changes even on one player reaching base somehow, as the hitters faced by each pitcher change from there on, every at-bat is altered. So many possible outcomes from each pitch, and I find that incredibly exciting.

I also love the numbers and analytics, seeing through the surface level and assessing if, at any point, a player could break out, do any pinch hitters shine against the areas this pitcher favors, working out the value a player brings to a club, why is a pitcher struggling. I find all this interesting for each new game; your past performances don’t matter; it’s how likely you are to positively impact the game at that moment. No one cares that Corbin Burnes has had a couple of poor outings because we know he’s more likely to give us a good start next time than Eric Lauer. I’ve always been a maths nerd, and the fact that almost every decision in a game is a probability-related one, such as if Mike Brosseau pinch hits and fields third base, is he that much better against left-handed pitchers to compensate for his weaker defense at the hot corner?

 I love the way the sound of a ball hitting the barrel of the bat makes you sit on the edge of your seat, the smack of a ball hitting the glove at first base or the catcher’s mitt, the face mashing slides and desperation in the outfield to make a catch, the millimeters defining whether a player has reached base safely or is out. I love how the whole complexion of a game changes even on one player reaching base somehow, as the hitters each pitcher faces change from there on; every at-bat is altered. So many possible outcomes from each pitch, and I find that incredibly exciting.

What do you think, Brewer Fanatics? What do you find is the most majestic thing about baseball? How would you show it off to your friends if they’ve never seen or played a game before?

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