I have been watching some Olympics when I can fit it in between baseball games, and I have come to a conclusion. I am not a big fan of events that are judged. Take diving for example. If I were judging men’s synchronized diving, first thing I would do is deduct a point for the uncomfortably small speedo’s they wear, and as a judge, I guess I would have the right to judge anything I want. I watched everyone dive, and they all looked pretty much the same to me. Some guys went in at a little bit of an angle, and some of them went in straight up and down. I kind of understand that part. But when I see two routines that look exactly the same, and one gets a score of 81 and the other guy gets a 61, that makes no sense to me. Gymnastics, Trampoline, and many other Olympic style sports do not make a lick of sense to a simple guy like me.
That is why I like baseball. Tonight, for example, the Rangers lost a game because the team they were playing against scored more points than they did. Do I like the fact that they lost? Not at all. But I only have one thing to blame, and that one thing is the Rangers. Not the Russian judge that was paid off by the mafia, not the French judge that did not like the athlete’s outfit, but the players themselves. Just imagine if baseball games were judged. “And the Russian judge took off .5 points from Kinsler’s run for his high socks look. We all know the Russians don’t like high socks.” Or, “Oh, David Murphy catches the ball but falls over afterwords! That is a full point deduction!” The Rangers scored 10 runs, but got 8 runs deducted. They lose 9-2 tonight. That is what I feel like when I watch some of these other sports. So, enjoy the Olympics while they are on, and remember that baseball will be there when you are done, scoring “events” the right way. On the field.
