Baseball, Reading, and My Happy Place

I don't know how to be a casual baseball fan.

I've only been seriously watching baseball since 2013. When I was younger, I know I went to some West Michigan Whitecaps (the Tigers' low-A affiliate) games and, I'm pretty sure I went to see the Tigers very shortly after Comerica Park opened. I remember the baseball Ferris wheel. Other than that, though, I was never really a baseball person - a sports person - in general. Things change. In the 3 seasons that I have been a serious and sophisticated fan (yeah, right), a lot has changed.

Let me back up. I can't talk about life as a fan if you don't know who I am a fan of, right? I live in Michigan so, naturally, my home team is the Detroit Tigers. I've adopted another team as my own, as well: the Miami Marlins. What can I say - I love the underdogs. Being a fan of these teams, especially the latter, is not always the easiest. The Tigers are coming off of postseason runs several seasons deep but, this year, things aren't looking quite that sunny. The Marlins, while seemingly better built for this 2015 campaign, are struggling, as well. Star players on both of my favorite clubs have been and still are hurt. Pitching is a weakness. Offense goes missing when it is needed the most. But, through it all, I love them. And I love baseball.

I've met some wonderful people because of this game. Now, admittedly, most of them I have not yet met in person. The girl I call my best friend is a Tigers fan and we came together on Twitter last year, like it was fate. Why wouldn't I want to surround myself with those who I can have meaningful conversations about the sport with? My family just expects me to talk about it, to watch it, to know it.

Like with reading and books, watching and discussing baseball is something that allows me to step away from the stress of job hunting or worrying about money or the complete loneliness that I sometimes feel. Like with books, baseball games can completely suck me into that world - nothing outside matters, only what is happening on the field. Baseball makes me think, fills me with excitement, works my mind in ways that reading can't, works in tandem with the exploration that books provide.

This post took a different direction than I expected. I was just going to talk about baseball and why I am a fan. I guess it makes more sense this way, though, connecting my two favorite things into one. Maybe, in the offseason, I will revisit this idea and think about whether or not reading has more importance when baseball isn't there every day. We'll see.