A Day We Never Saw Coming

The day I never thought would actually happen is here. Major League Baseball has officially announced the season has been delayed at least two weeks due to the coronavirus.

After announcing last night that a player on the Utah Jazz tested positive for coronavirus, the NBA put their entire season on hold. NHL announced the same thing this morning. MLB has not said they are suspending their season, but they did say Spring Training would be put on hold and that they plan on delaying the regular season at least two weeks, according to Ken Rosenthal.

As a fan, my emotions have been all over the place, trying to figure out the best way to handle this. As someone who owns a baseball-related website (the one you’re currently reading this on) that is basically brand new and trying to make something of it, this is a very stressful time. 

Baseball is my life. There’s really no other way to put it. Almost every minute of every day, my life is consumed by it. It’s a passion, it’s a hobby, and it’s also my job. Everything I do revolves around baseball. And knowing that we aren’t totally sure when it will be back. But at the same time, this was absolutely the right move by MLB, and it had to be done. But man, does this shit hurt.

I feel sad, angry, upset, hurt, etc. Every emotion has gone through my head today outside of any type of joy or happiness. To some people, this would be extremely dramatic, and I get that. But that’s their opinion, and if they don’t understand what baseball does for me and my mental health, that’s totally fine. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel lost without it. 

Baseball has been a part of my family my entire life. I grew up a Dodgers fan and being taught to hate the Giants from day 1. One of my earliest memories on tv is watching all of the Dodger fans holding up an asterisk on white signs to taunt Barry Bonds for steroids. The first memory I ever have at Dodger Stadium was against the Giants and sitting in Left Field Pavilion with my dad and brother. At the same time, a woman (Dodger fan) was getting arrested at the game, but the cops let her chug her beer in front of the crowd before cuffing her. Those are the memories I’ve held onto all these years later. They make me smile when I think about them, and even typing them out made me happy.

It’s stuff like that that I will miss for at least the next few weeks, if not longer. It’s going to a game by myself and then having 10 different friends to hang out with as soon as I walk into the stadium. It’s not just baseball, and it’s not just a sport. Without it, I’m missing my friends and visiting a place that felt like home. Have you ever walked into a building or some event, and you just felt like you could be yourself because you were surrounded by “your people”? That’s me at Dodger Stadium. It’s the only place where I don’t have a care in the world, and I feel like I can just be me.

Losing baseball is hard for a lot more reasons than just myself and what it does for me. I worry about my friends who work at the stadium and what this may mean for them. And I worry about my friends who use baseball as an outlet to deal with the difficulties of their life. A lot of people will hurt from this, and that’s honestly the worst thing that could happen. I also can’t help but think about the minor leaguers and what this may mean for them and their income. All I know is everyone’s health and safety does have to be the top priority, and I’m glad MLB is taking the right step to do their part in keeping their players and fans safe. Now let’s hope everyone else wants to do the same so we can all get back to our regular lives sooner rather than later.