I went to the Ballpark in Arlington yesterday afternoon with my friend Hawk and his 15-year-old son Brett Maris. (Those are his first two names; I think you can tell that his father is a baseball fan.) Don't laugh, but it was chilly in the ballpark, despite a temperature in the mid- to upper 60s. The wind was out of the north, and we sit at the very top of the ballpark, behind home plate. It was so chilly up there that we moved a few rows down. I would have been fine had I worn a jacket or a flannel shirt, but I didn't.
My adoptive team, the Texas Rangers, jumped in front of the Kansas City Royals, 2-0, in the first inning, but proceeded to fall behind, 5-3. It looked like the Royals might sweep. The Rangers tied the game in the bottom of the eighth on a bang-bang play at home plate. I told Brett that there would be a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth. Sure enough, Michael Young smashed the second pitch of the inning into the left-field stands to give the Rangers a 6-5 victory. The Rangers, resplendent in red hats and jerseys, mobbed him at the plate. The ballpark was only 56% full, but the fans went wild. You're probably wondering whether I'm one of the fans who went wild. Surely, by now, you know the answer.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 