Broken Bat - Baseball Forum: The Religion of Baseball

Forum >> Baseball >> The Religion of Baseball — a short essay.

Post ID	Date & Time	Game Date

#75264	07/04/2020 7:26:06 pm	Apr 14th, 2046
AssumedPseudonym Joined: 10/26/2016 Posts: 1130 Deerfield Beach Rats V.7	This is based off of a semi-random thought I had many years ago, recently brought to mind by a dream, after being reminded of it a few days ago by a tangentially related comment by someone on a roleplay-based Discord server I’m on, and finally typed up tonight after a response Rock had to a post of mine. ————— Baseball is, in a very real sense, nearly a religion unto itself. The rule book is our bible, and interpretation of the rules therein or even debate over which rules are the truest representation of the game lead to deep and contentious schisms, not the least of which is that between the National League and the American League. The players, managers, coaches, umpires, agents, owners, and league officials; these are our angels, and our demons. The Hall of Fame is our pantheon, reserved for those whose greatness exceeds even the elite of their day. Our ballparks are our cathedrals; venues such as Fenway Park and Wrigley Field are the holiest of ground. Our holy days and events are the first day of Spring Training, the draft, Opening Day, the All Star Game, the first day of the post-season, and the World Series. Teams also have their own celebrations and holidays, taking the form of stadium events such as Star Wars Day, Bobblehead Night, Fan Appreciation Day, or, for those fortunate few, the day they clinch their divisional pennant. The games are our services and the announcers are our preachers and holy men, with the greatest of these, men such as Red Barber and Vin Scully, canonized as saints within their own Hall of Fame. It is the task of these men to lead their congregations — their team’s fans and the faithful of the tenants of baseball — in the prayers which are the cheers for their team. Each game is a battle unto itself, staged within a larger holy war which pits the many teams against each other over the course of the season. The war’s winner, determined at the end of the season in the World Series, is the team permitted to hoist baseball’s holiest relic, the Commissioner’s Trophy. Those teams whose efforts were in vain and the fans thereof may take solace in knowing that, despite their loss in this season’s war, another will inevitably follow in the next year, bringing with it another chance to claim victory. The faithful of these teams know, after all, that if the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians can win the World Series after decades of drought, anybody can. Updated Saturday, July 4 2020 @ 7:30:23 pm PDT

#75267	07/04/2020 7:37:44 pm	Apr 14th, 2046
gocubs16 Joined: 01/07/2020 Posts: 116 Inactive	preach man. preach

#75270	07/04/2020 8:33:13 pm	Apr 14th, 2046
hurstdm Joined: 01/18/2017 Posts: 576 Murfreesboro Moo Cows VI.5	Fun! And you'd be looking for the classic "Church of Baseball" monologue from Bull Durham.

#75271	07/04/2020 8:40:43 pm	Apr 14th, 2046
AssumedPseudonym Joined: 10/26/2016 Posts: 1130 Deerfield Beach Rats V.7	I’ve never watched it, honestly, but I’m not even remotely surprised that I’m not the first to make a similar-ish comparison. I’m not that original, heh.

#75294	07/05/2020 4:30:55 pm	Apr 17th, 2046
hurstdm Joined: 01/18/2017 Posts: 576 Murfreesboro Moo Cows VI.5	Ms. Cow will be flying into Deerfield Beach tonight to make some popcorn and watch it with you. A must see movie for any baseball fan - and possibly any sports fan.

#75326	07/06/2020 6:11:03 pm	Apr 21st, 2046
Seca Joined: 05/05/2014 Posts: 5201 Waterloo Dinosaurs Legends	It is nice of you to share Ms Cow. Enjoyed the post. But baseball isn’t religion, it’s a story. Every AB is a story. Every inning is a story. Every game a story. Every series a story. Every season a story. Life is a collection of stories, and baseball in its many shapes and forms adds to the context.

#75504	07/12/2020 5:11:37 pm	May 14th, 2046
wuggla Joined: 05/10/2013 Posts: 1059 Colorado Springs Vultures VI.28	The Gods of Baseball=sim in Broken Bat. 1=God of Pinch Hit=Sacrifice Fielding. 2=God of Pinch Run=Sacrifice Bunt. 3=God of Defense=Sacrifice Hit 4=God of Strike Out=Sacrifice Home Run. Prayers Helping a Sim!!!! They just a few Deity also and The Voodoo all requires "Sacrifice" LOL

#85664	11/21/2021 2:29:56 am	Sep 20th, 2052
electriceel883 Joined: 05/26/2021 Posts: 1505 Irvine Infernos III.3	When did the Cleveland Indians last win the WS? 1948 wasnt it? On that, it was quite a big thing when the "Curse of the Babe" was broken for the Red Sox shortly after the millenium...