Watch the WBC for Mirth & the American Way

BASEBALL!

This World Baseball Classic is happening right now. I’ve been able to catch much of three games over the weekend, and was really impressed. More so than in 2006 (when the first event was held), this thing really seems to have some excitement and competitive fire from the teams and appears to be gaining traction from the fans.

Even though the very mention of baseball conjures up images of Americana for most, the WBC offers a fascinating (almost surreal) confirmation that places like Japan and the Caribbean have taken our national pastime and made it their own. And while baseball has been supplanted in many ways by the more ADD friendly NFL football, people in those countries absolutely glory in the game of baseball. And that IS great to behold.

Take the Canada / US game from Saturday. Big time sluggers on both sides. Great pitching.

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But it’s a shame if we let this go unnoticed in America. You know, this is cultural stuff. Everybody is enmeshed in buzzing around between X-Box operation, Blackberry usage, and… other media. We never get bored. We’ve been taught we don’t have to. BUT! Sometimes, in the silence comes the grandeur. This is so true in baseball. It’s the epic, almost living silence before a pitcher delivers 3 – 2 pitch with a runner in scoring position and the game on the line. It’s the fractional difference in a hitter’s swing between a game-tying home run and a strike out to end the game. It’s the unheard battle of wits between the two managers.

It’s insane complexity married to beautiful simplicity, and I can’t help but hope we rediscover our affection for it.