It’s always a letdown when the World Series ends, because it means we have to wait many long, cold months before the “boys of spring” return to the diamond. For those like me who were glued to the screen for this year’s amazingly exciting Series, I wonder how many appreciated the many teaching moments the games provided for kids. I have spent a career finding teaching moments in every aspect of a child’s life, especially in baseball, but in case you were too busy enjoying the games to think about boring your kids with life lessons between innings, here are a few you might pass along.
- Even superheroes have their bad days. The Yankees’ Aaron Judge finally broke through his postseason slump to hit a two-run homerun in game 5. But it wasn’t long after, in the same game, that he dropped a routine fly ball in the outfield, leading to an improbable Dodgers comeback. And Aaron wasn’t the only Yankees superhero to become a bit more human right before our eyes. Shortstop Anthony Volpe, whose grand slam homerun in Game 4 propelled his team to a rare game 5 (rare after going down 3-0), made a critical throwing error, further helping the Dodgers’ comeback and, ultimately, their winning the whole Series. To further muddy the superhero picture, Yankees ace pitcher Gerrit Cole made a mental error by not covering on a routine ground ball to first base, allowing the fateful Dodgers’ comeback inning to continue.
- It’s too easy to cast blame on others. There were 25 innings in the Series before those errors occurred, chock full of missed opportunities by the Yankees. Sure, that horrible game 5, inning 5 was fateful, but any of the previous innings could have won an earlier game for the Yankees. Too many Yankees runners were stranded on base in those earlier games, and Yankees pitchers gave up too many runs leading up to game 5. Before laying all the blame on Aaron, Anthony, and Gerrit, think about what might have been had others performed better.
- See the whole picture. Without superheroes Aaron, Anthony, and Gerrit, the Yankees would never have gotten as far as the World Series. The 162 game season proved the importance and merit of the three guys who made unfortunate flubs in game 5. Flubs happen, but it’s all the flawless times we should remember.
- Be a good fan. The Yankees fans who pried a foul ball from Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts’ glove, and the Dodgers fans who looted stores in L.A. after their team won the Series, illustrate the worst of us. Winning or losing, be a good fan – good sportsmanship goes beyond the playing field.
And for those of us in Colorado who haven’t had a winning team in many years, we resort to our traditional mantra…Maybe next year.
This picture is of another famous error in a World Series and hangs on my wall as a reminder of baseball’s heartbreak – how heroes can become “goats” in an instant. And it reminds us that we should memorialize all the good rather than the occasional mistakes in life. Billy Buckner’s muff of a ground ball allowed another famous Mookie (Wilson) to reach base and forever tarnished Buckner’s otherwise sterling baseball career. It might have even prevented him from Hall of Fame selection. Sportswriters who vote the Hall of Fame should also learn Lesson 3 above.
