I Hope This is the Way Baseball Go for a Few More Years

Ah it's that time again here in Arlington the Rangers are yet again going to the playoffs via a Division clinching win.  Well I almost made it through that last sentence with a straight face.  As any Red Shoe Rangers fan can tell you its been eleven years since we've smelled the playoffs around these parts.  No, no, no, Norman eleven years, count one past ten.  Cheep jokes aside (not likely), lets talk about this rare phenomenon known as The October Classic featuring the Texas Rangers.

So we've finally done it, we've gotten a true ace as well as a solid overall pitching staff.  We've gained a sustainable big-stick wielding offense.  Hell we've even got a skipper that we can laugh at, and have some measure of faith in.  Much akin to many of those my age who don't truly remember the last time the Rangers went to the playoffs.  We were off being preadolescent boys.  Watching Saturday morning and weekday afternoon cartoons, playing video games, throwing boogers at girls and in turn trying our hardest to not contract deadly cases of "the cooties", YUCK!  But my ignorance of sports, especially baseball, at a boyish age is unfortunately a product of my father.

The year is 1994, the Rangers are opening a beautiful new Ballpark literally right next to the old Arlington Stadium.  My Dad makes the decision that for the first time we are going to invest in season tickets.  We land bleacher seats in right center field, on the wall just behind the meshing of the Rangers bullpen.  My vague and sketchy memories of those days include chants of "Go, go, Julio!", my Dad teaching me to say, "Hiss boo!" at the opposing Angels team.  But as is true with all good things it came to an end.  The '94 season ended on August 12, 1994 to strike we lost out on a bunch of tickets, and my Dad abandoned baseball almost completely.  Those summer nights of getting Mr. Jim's Pizza and bringing it to our seats with us and just getting to be with my parents sparked me to want to play this thing I was beginning to love known as baseball.  I was subsequently signed up for tee ball but with my father's distancing from the sport, I never felt like I was receiving the support I needed and hung up my glove and bat after that season.  Consequently, my fear of never having my Dad's backing if I played a sport is something that I now may think is the reason I never wanted to play any sport.  I regret this now more than anything else in my life thus far but I digress.  I retold this story because if I was watching sports on TV it was with my Dad and since the '94 season, baseball has only been on our TV since Josh Hamilton handed out souvenir baseballs at the Home Run Derby, and that is probably only due to that performance and a small softening of my father's heart.

So needless to say I was slightly more clueless than many of my peers to the joy of the playoffs in those days so my joy now is unbridled and unabashed.  I am so ready for another team in this market to experience some success in the post-season.  I am just so ready for October and all that this wonderful month brings us.