Baseball season underway, Hey Chicago whadda you say, the Cubs are gonna win today. This popular refrain is of course from the song Go Cubs Go, made popular in the mid-eighties by Steve Goodman a life long Cub fan who was dying at the time. This song means so much to so many people, but to me It signifies one thing. Opening Day at Wrigley Field. I am now in my eleventh season at the old ball park, and every year on opening day as I arrive at the park One of the many Wrigleyville bars is blasting this very song. I know that most of you know that I am a Sox fan, and so this is the part where I rip the Cubs and say once again you have no chance at a title. I am taking the high road this year. You see deep down I am a baseball fan first. I played little league for 7 seasons and was coached by my father, just as he played and was coached by his father. Opening day means so much more to me than just a song. It brings back memories of my 36 years of life.
I can remember as a child coming home from school to watch whatever game was on. It was usually the Cubs who played all there home games during the day. I would watch in amazement as Dave Kingman would hit monster Homerun shots, and guys like Ron Cey and Larry Bowa made great play after great play. Then my father would come home we’d eat dinner and get ready to watch the Sox on Channel 44. Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines, and a rookie named Ron Kittle caught my attention. I actually copied Carlton’s batting stance when I hit 13, and had my most productive year ever in little league. Why am I telling you all this? Simply that Baseball to me is the greatest sport ever invented. I can’t think of a time in my life where baseball wasn’t a part of my life. I even threw out the first pitch at a Cub game when I was 14. A one hop that Jody Davis backhanded. That was the thrill of a lifetime.
I know that the season is young, and the expectations are high, but take a moment and just reflect on some of the good things in your life, think of what makes you happy. That’s what life is all about. The little moments are the ones that count. The memories of watching baseball with your dad, playing in the ball park til the lights go out, and sitting in the stands and rooting for your team to win. I was reminded of that this last Easter Sunday, as I sat in my dad’s living room with my dad, uncle and grandfather who is 81 and watched our White Sox beat the Twins. I couldn’t have been more happy. It was then that I realized it’s these moments that stick with you, for me it’s baseball. Ask yourself what is it for you?
Inside the Mind of Nick Rosario 