Comments on: I Like to Score

By: jwvals

jwvals — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:53:50 +0000

Killer, my Dad scored every game at the park and would always bark at himself if he did not score the game on radio. We used to go to see the hated Dodgers (NY Giants fans moved to LA) and Dad would always sit there with his program open to the middle and record the game. It was always a good time….

By: Lisa --

Lisa -- — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 02:45:53 +0000

Wow, you just made me really miss my grandfather. He was a dedicated Mets fan and taught me about baseball, took me to the stadium, and tried to teach me about score-carding. I was sad when the knocked down Shea Stadium, ugly as it was, because it held such fond childhood memories for me.

My grandfather went to his grave with his beloved Mets cap. He would have loved your homage to baseball. Thanks for taking me back.

By: Alan

Alan — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 21:14:20 +0000

Thanks for the post David.

For me, it’s not about what just happened (and how to score it) as much as it’s about what’s going to happen next. As a player, if you can’t predict and plan for the next likely event to happen, you won’t have nearly as much fun or be nearly as successful as a baseball player. I like to try and be on the same page as the manager or player before things happen. Some things never change.

Man on 1st with 3-1 count and less than 2 outs, look for the hit and run with batter trying to hit the ball through on the right side between the 1st and 2nd baseman. All to advance the runner, prevent the double play and single between the 1st baseman as the 2nd baseman running to cover 2nd base on the steal. It’s a work of art when executed well. Calling it out to your boy prior to the pitch, PRICELESS!!

By: Beth Bellor

Beth Bellor — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 20:52:43 +0000

Sadly, our coed softball team disbanded this year, and with it I have lost Sunday evenings keeping score (where I did less harm than as a catcher). The detail, the close attention that had to be paid, the great need people had for information only I possessed, all appealed to me. The thing I miss most from when I was pressed into service on the field: Being on base with two out, my favorite time. Just listen for the crack of the bat and run, run, run.

By: Charlie

Charlie — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 17:03:43 +0000

Nice job, I can smell the freshly-mown grass. As for scoring? No thanks, I’d prefer a colonoscopy.

By: Rev Jer

Rev Jer — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 14:58:19 +0000

David -

Thank you for sharing this, it was fun to read, and reminded me exactly why I love scoring a baseball game. Often when I go to a game it quickly becomes about everything but the action on the field, which is fine. But sometimes I want to be intimately connected to the action, and scoring brings me instantly into that relationship with it. Within an inning of scoring I am noticing where the left fielder shades the hitters, how the SS positions himself just before the pitcher releases, I am in the pitchers head as he thinks through pitch selection. For those who have never scored a baseball game, yes its geeky, but it sure is fun.

- Rev Jer

By: David Churbuck

David Churbuck — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 01:24:39 +0000

Laptops not allowed in ballparks. Sushi should be banned too, along with the Wave, thundersticks, and crying babies.

By: Mitch Ratcliffe

Mitch Ratcliffe — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 00:53:15 +0000

You’ve put the Ur- back in baseball. Ur-baseball is found in low pro ball and score sheets. Great essay.

By: Craig Merrigan

Craig Merrigan — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 23:20:46 +0000

Lovely, poetic post. But keeping scoring sheet sounds like a trip to the dentist. I fear I prefer things which probably sound like torture to others.

I wrote a comment, but it got a bit long. So it became a post on my blog.

http://merrigan.wordpress.com/2009/07/16/to-each-his-own-ball-game/

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 21:07:13 +0000

They have software that you can use also – pretty slick stuff