June 3: My Padres

Last summer I watched over 250 Major League Baseball games. Two Five Zero. Some of them were live, some of them were recorded, and some of them were watched live as they were being recorded. A few were longer than the standard nine innings while others were shortened by rain. I believe the longest I saw was sixteen innings and the shortest was a postponed game that lasted half an inning. On average, I watched two to three games a day for the duration of the season.

By the time the season ended, I was exhausted. I was sick of baseball. I had seen too much. My one true pastime had started to feel like work and I began to hate it. Fastball, curveball, cutter, slider, change, I didn't care any more. I was doing my share of the work in the office and then I would go back to my apartment and watch the Padres' games. It was a lot of baseball, to say the least.

This year has been a complete turn around. I still catch the back end of most Padres' games, but it's not nearly enough. It's a lot easier to follow a first-place team than a last-place one. I plan my evenings around their games and I get really upset when I have a night off and they do too. Like tonight.

My apartment feels extra lonely and quiet tonight without the sound of Ted Leitner and Andy Masur describing every detail of the game. I miss the constant buzz of a crowd and I even long for the repetitive Kerry Steigerwalt and Associates commercials. I could listen to another game with different teams involved, but it isn't the same as having my Padres there to root for.

I saw entirely way too much baseball in 2009. I have missed entirely way too much baseball in 2010. It's funny how one can grow so sick of something only to really miss it when it's not there. It's still early in the season, but I could really go for some more baseball right about now.