You're Doing It Wrong: Spring Training Malaise

David Price, Tampa Bay Rays; sidenote, didn't he already pitch a no-hitter against my Jays?

My preseason training regime isn't going so well.

Yes, I am eating most of the right kind of food, and snacking on sweets was on the decline since the end of February, yet as far as getting in shape for baseball that might not be for at least another month o_O The decision over which league to play in, or at least how many, weighs on my mind like a baseball bag full of bowling balls.

The league I played in last year is self-officiated, and the teams we played shout the ground rules they want to play in each game, and sometimes change them during the game to suit their offensive situation. One team not only took one player in and out of the lineup, but also during a play hoping no one on my team would notice. I am not sure if I want to return to that league, or try my hand at another self-officiated league in the city. Then again, playing in those leagues prepared me for the summer, and last year was my best season; the question becomes how many leagues do I join in 2012?

There is also the problem of purchasing baseball gear for the new year o_O There isn't enough money right now to buy new gear like baseball gloves, bats, and cleats, so I must take a page from the book of Red Army athletes from the old Soviet Union, and wear old gear on the bus to games around the city (true true true true true). I did that a couple of times, and it turned the heads of some the ladies riding the bus ^_^ (lies lies lies lies lies).

Michael Wilbon, ESPN

To boost my baseball credibility, I'm following ESPN Sports broadcasters and journalists Dan Shulman, Kevin B. Blackistone, Michael Wilbon, and Stuart Scott on Twitter ^_^ No, following a handful of talented writers and ESPN personalities will not get you published T_T However, if you follow their tweets and cover the subjects they discuss and tweet about on a daily basis, perfect your writing skills, respect the opinions of others in your field, and generate an audience that respects what you say in return, eventually you will get to where you want to be ^_^ For example, I know nationally revered ESPN journalist and Pardon The Interruption co-host Michael Wilbon is a diehard Cubs fan; for 2012, but my original plan was to wear out DODGERS gear to baseball games this year. Would it be beneficial for my writing career to shelve my plans of dressing up in my Los Angeles DODGERS road jersey with the name "Hollywood" printed on the back of my personalized authentic MLB jersey, and buy all three CUBS jerseys sporting names like "Bluetooth", "Ironhide" and "Animal" just for the chance I may be mentioned in an ESPN article? Probably not, and I may end up in debt after buying another jersey online o_O However, there are a few readers I picked up over the course of 2011 who followed this blog and my humourous attempts at playing city ball, and pretending I look like I know what I'm doing.

That's what I should do, or rather what I should keep doing: Writing about the ups and downs of the city league season as well as my take on Major League Baseball in 2012 ^_^, while being as truthful as possible. This year should be an interesting one (I'm buying the jerseys though)!