Play Ball!!

The Pittsburgh Pirates open the 2005 season on April 4 at home against the Milwaukee Brewers. Being a Pittsburgher, I have been a Pirates fan my whole life (note: I am also a big Yankees fan. Call me a front-runner if you like, but I became a Yankee fan at about age 10 when Don Mattingly played first base and the Yankees never won a World Series. I too think Steinbrenner is a big jerk, but until the owners can all make a decision to level the playing field, that’s not going to change. The Yankees are my second favorite team (I have a cat named Jeter) and since the Pirates suck (but I still love them), the Yankees give me something to root for in October).

I’ve never been to a home opener, and this year will likely be no different. There is an early season game I want to attend, however. On April 15th, the Buccos play the Cubbies. I’m not going in the hopes of seeing Mark Prior pitch (he’s out with an elbow injury anyway) and the steroid-pumped Sammy Sosa was traded to the Orioles. The reason I want to go is plain and simple: the Pirates are giving away a Jason Bay bobblehead.

I collect bobbles. Specifically, I have every Pirates player bobblehead that was given away at PNC Park. I have a few other bobbles (a Nittany Lion standing in Beaver Stadium, the first Penguins Mario Lemieux giveaway), but I collect the ones they give out at PNC Park. Some of them are “Players Who Don’t Play for Pittsburgh Anymore” (Brian Giles, Jason Kendall) and some are Hall of Famers (Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell). Some fit the “What?” category (Manny Sanguillen). Regardless, I have one of each of them. I even have both Josh Gibson dolls (they gave away both the same night and I actually traded one of my two Pittsburgh Crawfords Gibson bobbles and $20 for a Homestead Grays bobble).

I am hoping my daughter ends up a fan of baseball. My wife is, so there’s a good chance. Last month, I bought her a pink Pirates onesie and shorts outfit at Wal-Mart for her to wear to some games this summer. We took her to her first game last September 24th. She mostly just slept, even through the post game fireworks, but it was sort of magical to me. I hope it was the start of a summer family tradition. I won’t bog my daughter down with how to box score a game (I can’t even do it well myself) or a lot of game theory, but I hope she learns to love the game.

In addition to the Bay giveaway, there are three other bobblehead nights this year. There were no player bobbleheads given away at PNC Park in 2004 and it didn’t matter much anyway. My wife and I only made it to two games last summer: the night before my daughter was born and that night in September.

As for the Pirates themselves.... I am guessing this will be their 13th consecutive losing season. I’ll still go see them play though, and I’ll root against the visiting team. I’d love to see the Pirates in it into October, but I think that’s still a few seasons down the road. Maybe if they are better by 2010, my daughter will have a greater love for the game.

Her first Pirates game