The Red Sox and their Role in my Life

I was unable to post my Thursday Thoughts yesterday, October 18, so here we go.

I watched a lot of baseball this year. Specifically, the Boston Red Sox. Last night, Boston beat the Houston Astros to win the American League Championship Series. Now we'll go on to the World Series against either the Los Angeles Dodgers or Milwaukee Brewers. It was... Thrilling. Although the Red Sox are the best team in the majors this year (108 wins, the top record in 2018 AND the best record in Red Sox franchise history!), it still felt like the Astros would win it. They won the World Series last year, and this year's team was even better than last year's.

Now I'm too young to remember the miracle of the 2004 season, in which Boston came back from an 0-3 deficit against the New York Yankees to win the ALCS, then the World Series. And I only started caring about sports a couple of years ago when the Patriots orchestrated the greatest Super Bowl comeback in NFL history against the Atlanta Falcons. I guess, in some context, you could call me a bandwagon fan, and I'd totally understand. Will I care about the Red Sox as much next season if they start to lose? I don't know. I hope so. Will I care about the Patriots if we don't make the playoffs this year? I don't know, but I hope so.

I do know this: Right now, I'm loving every minute of every game. When I'm not watching the Red Sox play, I'm reading articles on them, trying to gain just a little more insight into the game and the team. I'll watch old replays on YouTube, from the glorious Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS to top highlights from the 2018 season. Primetime baseball, for the moment, has become part of my daily routine.

Maybe I'm wasting my time. Maybe I could spend that 3+ hours a day doing something more productive, something that matters. But right now, I feel more like a New Englander than I have in a long time. Right now, I'm totally hooked on it. Right now, America's pastime has gotten to me, and I love it.