I realize that many people will disagree with some what I will be saying down below, but hey, that’s why we are sport fans.
As the 2020 baseball will finally be played, we are just about a week away from major league action in baseball. Listen, all this talk about an asterisk being place upon this season, that is all nonsense to me. It is no doubt that this season will be like no other, but come on, every season isn’t the same. Ok, fine this season will have new rules and features, but baseball is one of the many sports that is ever changing.
I get it, baseball is seen as American Pastime and has long been apart of the societal tradition, but like everything nowadays, baseball too has to change to keep up with the time. Now, I am not saying, “I agree with the new guidelines”, nor am I saying that “I disagree with the newly implemented rules”. All I am saying is that we have to make do and accept that baseball has changed according to its time of existence.
Yes, I know people who are reading this will want to be vocal toward what I am saying, so go ahead. That is what I love about sports, especially when it comes to baseball. As far as I am concerned, I get that playing a season that is 102 games less is grind, but that is no reason to put an asterisk next to this season in the baseball records. To me, when that asterisk is there, it symbolizes that someone is at fault, but no one can be blamed for a season that was shortened by a virus.
Yes, when it comes down to it, a 162-game season is a marathon, but this this season is not a marathon. The 2020 season will be a full on sprint to the finish line. Joe LoGrippo of http://www.pinstripealley.com said, “When I hear the word asterisk while discussing baseball, the 2017 Houston Astros come to mind, and I’m sure a large portion of others can say the same. The reason for that is obvious: they cheated.” Quite frankly, I agree with him because I feel the same way. Although, a shorten season will raise health concerns for every team, I believe that everyone will take extra precautions to stay 100 percent. I know everyone will like to believe that as well, but all we can do is hope for the best.
Back to this asterisk concept, I know many of you out there believe that this year’s champion will have to be discounted. Now, that my friend(s), is where you and I will have to take part in a debate. I happen to believe that like any other season, there will be a postseason feel to this one as well. Granted, this season will most likely skip the regular season build-up, and just go straight to the October-fest type of atmosphere.
What I believe will happen is there will be two possible outcomes.
At the end of the highly intense race to the finish line, my number one possibility consist of the Yankees and the Nationals squaring off in a seven game World Series match-up. In this scenario, I believe it will be a long-fought battle that will end after seven games with the Yankees hoisting their 28th championship above their heads.
In my second scenario, I have another A.L-vs-N.L match-up. The match-up has been apart of the conversation between baseball analysts before the very first Spring Training. That’s right, I am talking about a Yankees-vs-Dodgers conversation. I think the possibility of the two teams going up against each other is an interesting one. In theory, if the two teams were to go up against each other in a World Series, I got to believe it would be an intense battle as well. I would like to think that the Yankees would come out on top.
With both of those scenarios as a possibility, I don’t see a reason for an asterisk to be placed upon this year’s championship holders. A shorten season won’t change what the postseason normally feels like, and for that reason I would like to believe this year’s baseball action gets straight to the point of postseason action. In a corona-free world, when all is said and done, the regular season doesn’t matter once you turn the calendar page to October. I know I will get some heat for my next statement, but with that being said, “The virus has brought us to the climax of a regular 162 game season.”
The Pinstriped Baseball Lane 