The trio of Karl Ravich, Harold Reynolds and John Kruk didn’t look too comfortable or excited in the press box of Legends Field during the spring training game featuring the home New York Yankees against the St. Louis Cardinals.
All of the elements that make baseball America’s pastime were present, but something was missing.
It wasn’t the crack of the bat, the adjustment of the cup, Big League Chew or the feel of the raised seams. It was the newcomer to the group: the World Baseball Classic.
To be honest, I didn’t think that I would get into the World Baseball Classic when I first saw good ‘ol Bud Selig plugging it over the winter.
After all, the players would still be in spring-training shape, the strict pitch counts would limit some of the stars, and, frankly, I didn’t want to see Mike Piazza suiting up for Italy.
Looking at the pools, it was quite clear that the teams from the continents named after Amerigo Vespucci and Asia would be the frontrunners to take home the title. I mean, South Africa, Australia and Italy have no business competing in such a star-studded tournament.
But then George Steinbrenner went on the record and said the World Baseball Classic was the worst thing to happen that could happen to baseball.
And just like that, I was hooked.
Maybe it was because Steinbrenner stands for everything I hate, maybe it was hearing Rick Sutcliffe calm my nerves with his dreamy voice, or maybe it was those guys on ESPN Deportes shouting out after a homerun.
I don’t know what it was, but I’m in it for the long haul now.
The World Baseball Classic has brought the feel of October baseball to March. Instead of sitting in front of the TV watching guys from Double A try to play with the big boys, baseball fans get to see their favorite players actually caring about wins and losses.
And what’s better than an event that can push Barry Bonds updates off the front page of ESPN.com?
Even though the true motive behind the Classic was probably merchandising and marketing to the Latin America countries, the tournament has already had more storylines than the Detroit Tigers generated all of last season.
First, there was Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen calling out Alex Rodriguez for his choice to play for Team USA instead of the Dominican Republic (Rodriguez was born in New York). Guillen even threw in a potshot at Nomar Garciaparra.
Then, there was the debate over whether or not to allow Cuba to play in the tournament. No one wanted to see Fidel Castro’s pride and joy storm through pool play and take home the crown.
Team USA lost to America, Jr. To make matters worse for the boys from the states, the Detroit Tigers’ Triple-A closer picked up the save for the Canucks.
There was David Ortiz’s monster shot over the rightfield fence against Cuba. The most impressive part of the power was Ortiz’s emphatic bat flip and glance back at the Cuba catcher.
And, just two nights ago at the Cuba Dominican Republic game, several fans sported t-shirts with letters spelling out “abajo Fidel” (down with Fidel). After a confrontation with security personnel, they removed the shirts.
These few highlights just go to show how much the World Baseball Classic means to the fans of the remaining teams. When the camera scrolls along the stands for any game in Puerto Rico, the crowd is going nuts – jumping up and down, cheering on its team.
Many in the states couldn’t care less that Team USA lost to Canada or may not advance into the final four, but fans from the other countries take this seriously.
Every year, we have the balls to say that one Major League team is the world champion. Now, we finally have a chance to crown a real world champion.
Yes, the players suiting up for Team USA take pride in wearing their country’s colors, but some in the states would rather see the team fail than succeed.
The World Baseball Classic has allowed baseball and its fans to forget about steroids and the astronomical salaries that Major League players earn. It’s brought out the purity of the game where the players are playing for more than just money, numbers or commercials. They’re playing for their country.
Even if cheering on your country doesn’t sound appealing, at least you don’t have to sit in a stuffy press box next to John Kruk.
– Kevin Wright can be reached at kpwr@umich.edu.