When we reach this time of year, more than a few holiday greetings from a hearty ” …and good Riddles by 2020!”
Many of us will be happy to be done with 2020, but as much as we want to leave it behind, most of us will not be able to forget it. Last year was profoundly transformative for all aspects of society, and the effects of the recent time pandemic ranged from trivial to deadly.
We were all affected in one way or another, and when we were lucky, it was usually a dashing wait, a delay in satisfaction and a challenge to our resilience. If we think about a few paragraphs about the impact of all this on baseball, it goes without saying that such a discussion will not be conducted in complete ignorance of the pain and sadness that has taken place around us and around the world.
For many of us-probably you when you read about baseball, while visions of sugar plums dance in your mind-baseball is part of your routine. It is synonymous with constancy and normality. During the season, the game is there almost every night. And the off-season usually has its own pace, so every few weeks we reach another stage on the way back to the pitchers and receivers.
This year was obviously different. So quite different.
Amid all that unfolded and the way so many aspects of our lives were put on hold, baseball seemed secondary, and the lingering delay of his return was an accepted part of a greater moment in our history. Back then, he began to return – and not without worrying brinksmanship from owners and players – baseball was a welcome consolation for a year he could exploit.
Perhaps that’s why fans were mostly willing to accept the litany of compromises when the game returns this year. For a sports and fan base that could be tied to tradition, a full list of changes to schedules and gameplay was deemed necessary to allow for the safe return of the game and the greatest possible stay on the field.
Some may be upset by the idea that we must accept the positive that has emerged from this tragic year, but if there was a learning moment for baseball, it is that change can be good and tradition should not be sacrosanct.
In a broader context, it was at worst a concession to have a certain hitter in the National League, but rather an assumption of a possible fate. More notable was the way previously unthinkable changes such as extended playoffs, seven-inning games or the runner’s extra innings rule on the second inning could be tolerated if not accepted. Summary, both would have been tasteful, but in practice they were the kind of wrinkles that simply added a bit of color to a strange season.
The Toronto Blue Jays went through a lot of changes last season, and whatever expectations for last year’s holiday season, that wasn’t what ultimately happened. They could have gotten a lot of money against the possibility that Alejandro Kirk had a hit after the season.
It was a season that certainly could have been excused for less success. The Blue Jays began a long road trip and eventually made Buffalo their home after several jurisdictions told them they were not welcome. The Jays slipped into an extended playoff bracket thanks to several teams that were uncompetitive, but also played well during a tough schedule the final month of the season to celebrate their season-ending berth.
And if they had told us we had to get a little foggy thinking tape measure bombs would be hit on a highway sign, it would certainly have been confusing. But there are some fond memories of the powerful outbursts of Teoscar Hernandez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Danny Jansen sent over 190-North in the general direction of the Peace Bridge and Niagara Falls.
We’ve spent much of the last twenty years of the baseball fandom focusing more on probabilistic analysis and focusing on the most likely outcomes. If we close this year and look carefully into the future, it seems like it’s madness to make predictions about what next season will look like. Questions about how many games the Blue Jays can play, when they can start, where they’ll actually play them, or who might be on their roster, all seem uncertain.
It is certain that the rotation of the page in the calendar will not bring many of these problems in the past. As a society, we will continue to explore how we can adapt to life in this new context. recent time hasn’t gone away, and many have probably gotten too used to it, as infection rates continue to go well beyond the level that the company actually closed in the spring. As a fan, you have little choice but to accept the year ahead.