Baseball is back baby!
Sort of.
Spring training games officially started today and I'm really excited.
My past self would think I'm crazy for saying that. Apart from skateboarding, I was never seriously into any sport. I was more of a "read books and play video games" kind of kid. I only got into baseball in 2024 largely through Shohei Ohtani. I just kept hearing about the guy so I figured I'd take a look and man... that guy is good.
Despite Ohtani being a Dodger, I ended up watching quite a few New York Mets games because I thought the team was funny. You'd see something ridiculous like "7-0 IN THE GRIMACE ERA METS WIN!!!" and laugh... only to realize it's an actual post1. The Mets really did go on a seven game win streak after Grimace threw out the first pitch.
One of their players, José Iglesias, also performs as a Latin pop singer and wrote "OMG" which they would sometimes perform after wins.
It was fun, silly things like that which got me interested in the team.
And then... and then there was the Chicago White Sox. Poor bastards.
If you aren't aware, the 2024 White Sox lost 121 games. They only won 41. Freaking 41! The second worst team in baseball that year were the Colorado Rockies and they won 612. A whole 20 game difference. Not only that, the White Sox had multiple 10+ game losing streaks with their highest at 21.
And yet, I found myself watching them. Why? Maybe because I appreciate an underdog story. Maybe because I liked watching a slow-moving car crash. Maybe I just love misery.
Either way, I found myself a fan of them. And now, I'm interested to see how they perform. Last year, their 2025 season, saw them marginally better at 60-102. A solid increase. This year, they've added slugger Munetaka Murakami and they've got interesting young players in Kyle Teel (catcher) and Colson Montgomery (shortsop) to name a few.
And it's here that I feel slightly embarrassed. I'm thinking about my younger self, who would think I'm lame for looking at player stats and catching games and being excited about baseball.
But fuck my younger self. I like baseball now.