Let's face it, as a society, we are pretty much going in the wrong direction. We find interest in and celebrate some of the worst aspects of our human nature. A virtual "nobody" finding notoriety because of some tawdry behavior, celebrities and politicians scandalously cheating on their significant others, and oil companies that cannot seem to accept the responsibilities that go with their criminal behavior all are raised to the headline and occupy our minds for weeks at a time.
What message does this send to our next generation? Not a good one, that's for sure. If you want to be known for something and be celebrated, it will not be because you are a person of character or decency. How wonderful.
And so it came to be that Thursday's news cycle was preoccupied with Wednesday night's baseball game between the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Indians. Why? Because umpire Jim Joyce made a terrible call on the last play of what would have been only the 21st perfect game thrown in Major League Baseball history. The last out was at hand when the umpire called the runner safe, ending the chance for a perfect game. On replay, the call was not just wrong, but badly wrong. Not even close.
So we are not surprised that this game was elevated to our consciousness because of the negative - the blown call - an error that was a travesty of justice. This was a perfect game that will never be counted. Is that true? I don't think so. I think, and I hope, that this game is never forgotten. As "America's Pastime," baseball is more than just wins and losses.
Following the bad call, Armando Galarraga, the pitcher and the biggest "victim" in the drama, looked at the umpire with a surprised smile and walked away peacefully. He never said a word. Jim Leyland, the Detroit manager, who came out of dugout and gave the umpire his ire, apologized for his behavior after the game. The umpire, Jim Joyce, was practically in tears following his review of the replay and apologized to everyone for making what he termed "a historic error." He apologized personally to Galarraga.
I listened to a lot of radio sports talk on Thursday. Many said, "of course they behaved that way, it is the right thing to do, it is expected." Is it? In today's day and age, we want to believe that, but that is not what we celebrate. This is written on Friday - 48 hours later. The event is out of the news cycle. Gone. If there had been a fight or bad behavior, it would be talked about right through the weekend. We simply don't celebrate the good stuff.
Like most of us, I can't tell you who the pitchers are that have thrown a perfect game, but I won't forget Armando Galarraga. The importance of putting a statistic in a record book is really to make sure that your feat is remembered. Mr. Galarraga has managed to do that even though his statistic won't be recorded in Cooperstown.
This game will be remembered for bringing out the best in our humanity. The graciousness of a pitcher, who it appears lost a spot in history. The humility of a manager who behaved poorly but quickly apologized. The accountability and remorse of an umpire for a bad mistake.
As so many of our next generation graduate and take their next step in life, I can't think of a finer example that could be given to them. Humility, graciousness, accountability, and class are the perfect gifts. So how do you define a perfect game? In my mind, this will always be the perfect game that topped them all. The only one in history that took 28 outs instead of 27. Perfect in every way we should appreciate. Thanks Jim Joyce and thanks Armando Galarraga for showing us the best we can all hope to be.
No comments:
Post a Comment