America's Pastime

The American Pastime

Baseball is a game loved by many world-wide. In this game, you have two teams of at least nine players each. One team pitches and one team bats. Each player bats and tries to run to as many bases as possible, and score as many runs, without getting out. The field is in the shape of a diamond with four bases; first, second, third, and home. Each player stands at home base to bat, and the pitcher approximately sixty feet in away from them. The goal of the pitcher is to strike the batter out. Each pitch can be a strike, ball, or a foul. After the pitch, it is the other teams job to try and catch the ball to get a player out. The love of this game continues to grow. Early in history, baseball was used as a pastime from things such as war. Baseball has led many greats, such as Jackie Robinson and Babe Ruth that helped shape baseball into the sport it is today. In order to get a better explanation of baseball, we interviewed Alex Bowman to get an insider's look at this pastime.

Alex is a freshman in college who played baseball for thirteen years and recently had to take a break due to a torn Labrum in his shoulder. On the field, he would play short stop and third, two very important positions. Alex would bat with the typical 33 inch bat that weighs 30 pounds. When asked what he likes most about baseball, he responded with one word, “relaxing.” Games are different in each division. In high school, games are seven innings, and after that, there are nine. Before each game, there was practice. At practices, you would have bat practice, on the field and in the cages, and you also “took” infield and outfield, which is a term in baseball meaning to work on defense. Alex spoke very highly of baseball. His favorite team is the Red Sox. When asked about his most influential character, he responded with “obviously Babe Ruth...”