Major newspapers across the country were flooded with all sorts of breaking news this week. Readers flocked to newsstands over the past seven days to find themselves surrounded by headlines about the Beltway sniper, the war on Iraq, North Korea and… baseball?
That’s right. Leaves are turning orange and yellow, the days are getting shorter and the weather is getting cooler. It must be October and it must be time for the World Series.
This year the Major League Baseball’s biggest and most prominent event is taking place solely in California. Dubbed the California Series, 2002’s ultimate showdown features the Anaheim Angels and the San Francisco Giants.
That said, I must also say this: Thank God for baseball. It is times like these, when a psychotic sniper has been on the loose, killing seemingly random, innocent people, or when our country is on the verge of war and a 20 year old male like myself is in prime drafting age, that I am thankful that the United States knows when to sit back, relax and divert its attention to something other than the issues of the world.
It may seem a little apathetic, sure, but we are all humans and we get tired of hearing about all that is wrong in the world.
Seeing headlines about another victim or another country revealing their plans for nuclear weapons alongside that of “Angels defeat Giants, 10-4” is refreshing.
What is great about California is that we are already home to the three-time champion Los Angeles Lakers. Thanks to Shaq, Kobe and the boys, LA finally has some recent recognition in the world of sports.
Anaheim can definitely add on to this to make SoCal a force to be reckoned with.
As a matter of fact, in one of this week’s editions of the Los Angeles Times, baseball made the front page, while the ongoing saga with Iraq was bumped down to page three.
And while I am never one to criticize the media, the news before the World Series was quite depressing. It really brought me down, and did not necessarily give me a great outlook for the future.
In addition to all of the things going on in my life, I did not want to have to worry about the threat of war and all of the world’s problems as well.
Despite what seems to be sports knowledge, I do not really watch sports at all. I’m actually one of those people who will hear bits and pieces about the local teams throughout the year and then watch the World Series, playoffs or finals.
Surprisingly, I actually went to a Dodgers’ game over the summer, in which they lost to the Giants.
In a way, I wish the World Series would not end. It brings people together, in a sense. They may totally oppose each other because of the team they root for, but it is a good rivalry and promotes a healthy sense of competition.
This kind of stuff is also healthy for people living on the east coast. I am sure the people who live in or around the Washington, D.C. area have been so scared to even leave their houses. This is a diversion for them, and great reason for them to stay inside.
I must say that this particular World Series seems interesting. I say this because I really have not had the time to watch each game between work and school.
Personally, I’m rooting for the Angels because they have never been to the final showdown before. They are also the closest team geographically to the Dodgers, so it is only natural that I root for Orange County’s biggest threat.
For now, I am going to have to put Dodger Blue on the back burner and throw the Rally Monkey out in the forefront.
Tim Tevault, a junior journalism major, is editorial director and copy chief of the Campus Times. He can be reached by e-mail at hellag33@aol.com.
