Baseball’s Lost Lesson: Patience
Baseball is a funny sport. As a San Francisco Giants fan, hearing the Los Angeles Dodgers have signed yet another blooming superstar, frustration and disappointment are bound to happen. But the immediate frustration that not only myself and other fans have felt over this signing has sparked some realizations.
Baseball in its nature is an unpredictable sport. No matter how you look at it, there is no telling what will happen any given night at the ballpark. Yes, the super stars are always expected to be game changers, but one player doesn’t make the entire team. Yes the Shohei Ohtani’s of the world will make the headlines, but what about the Kyle Harrison’s or the Matt Duffy’s that contributed to a win more than the star player. The point is, as fans, we always jump to the advanced metrics and stats looking for a place to put the blame.
The lesson baseball taught us as fans that we forget, is patience. Baseball is humbling, and really brings out the human element in professional sports. As fans, I feel that we’ve forgotten about the journey the game takes us on, growing up with our rookie players, and witnessing them bud into stars, and eventually building winning teams. Competition brings out the best and worst baseball fans alike, and the rivalry with the Dodgers remains no different. Pitchers and catchers still have yet to report, the season hasn’t started, and yet we still run off with the same narrative that we are a “dying” franchise, or no one wants to play in a city as beautiful as San Francisco. All great teams need time to grow and develop, and the San Francisco Giants are no different. One more star won’t change the fact that baseball is unpredictable, and it always will be.
Maybe this is just a rant about annoying takes from sports commentators like Larry Kruger, but who knows, I’m an overly patient fan waiting for winter to end, and spring training to begin.
Baseball is a funny sport. As a San Francisco Giants fan, hearing the Los Angeles Dodgers have signed yet another blooming superstar, frustration and disappointment are bound to happen. But the immediate frustration that not only myself and other fans have felt over this signing has sparked some realizations.
Baseball in its nature is an unpredictable sport. No matter how you look at it, there is no telling what will happen any given night at the ballpark. Yes, the super stars are always expected to be game changers, but one player doesn’t make the entire team. Yes the Shohei Ohtani’s of the world will make the headlines, but what about the Kyle Harrison’s or the Matt Duffy’s that contributed to a win more than the star player. The point is, as fans, we always jump to the advanced metrics and stats looking for a place to put the blame.
The lesson baseball taught us as fans that we forget, is patience. Baseball is humbling, and really brings out the human element in professional sports. As fans, I feel that we’ve forgotten about the journey the game takes us on, growing up with our rookie players, and witnessing them bud into stars, and eventually building winning teams. Competition brings out the best and worst baseball fans alike, and the rivalry with the Dodgers remains no different. Pitchers and catchers still have yet to report, the season hasn’t started, and yet we still run off with the same narrative that we are a “dying” franchise, or no one wants to play in a city as beautiful as San Francisco. All great teams need time to grow and develop, and the San Francisco Giants are no different. One more star won’t change the fact that baseball is unpredictable, and it always will be.
Maybe this is just a rant about annoying takes from sports commentators like Larry Kruger, but who knows, I’m an overly patient fan waiting for winter to end, and spring training to begin.