Baseball and My Pops

Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads out there. Mine in particular.

I love baseball almost to fault. And in this case, the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. Growing up, we never got to listen to music in the car. If I wanted to listen to Boyz II Men, it would need to be on my own time. Because the radio was always tuned to KNBR 24/7.

Baseball was always on in our family room. My mother would holler at my father and I swear, he wouldn’t even hear her. Oh, dinner’s ready? Let’s eat in front of the TV so we don’t miss any on the ballgame.

Dad taught me the difference between a two-seam and four-seam fastball. He explained the nuances of the balk. He taught me about what characteristics makes a swing beautiful (basically Buster Posey’s swing). He supported me in softball, driving me to practice, taking me to pitching clinics, and letting me dent up the garage door by practicing my release point on pitches with a rubber softball. He was and is an excellent dad.

One of my favorite and most fond memories of my dad is at one of our first Giants games at AT&T Park. He had purchased Field Club tickets for the first time and I was beyond excited. I wanted desperately to see and get an autograph from JT Snow and knew the tunnel entrance was in the hallway behind our seats. The game went long and the Giants lost (not uncommon during that time…). My dad rushed me out of our seats, worried we would miss the last Caltrain if we didn’t hurry. I wanted to stay and wait for JT to come out and potentially get a signature. Dad wasn’t having it so we left and got on the train.. with me holding an unsigned baseball and sharpie and fuming at my dad for ruining my one and only chance to get an autograph from my favorite player.

The next week, my dad came home from work with a signed JT Snow baseball he had purchased off eBay. He felt so terrible that he went out and bid on the ball so I could have a JT Snow memorabilia. I was so touched. I mean, if that’s not love, I don’t know what is.

Through the years, Pops and I have attended countless games together. We don’t talk a lot, but when we do, we discuss baseball. So in honor of my father, I wanted to share some of the funnier baseball texts I’ve received from him. He may not be the best speller and he definitely lets autocorrect run it’s course, but god damnit, he loves baseball….

Lots of texting happening during the World Series in 2010. Apparently he knows how horrible it is to have a child..