America’s pastime postponed

April 2, 2020 toddvogts COVID-19, Personal Notes 0

Despite the fact the season isn't being played, I still put my St. Louis Cardinals flags out this morning in honor of what should have been the home opener for the Redbirds.

I miss baseball.

This picture was taken last year during our annual trip
to watch the St. Louis Cardinals play.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand why the baseball season has been delayed indefinitely. With COVID-19 running rampant throughout the country, it had to be done.

But still, I miss baseball.

See, my family and I are diehard St. Louis Cardinals fans. I’m named after the 1986 relief pitcher Todd Worrell. My son — born Feb. 17, 2020 — is named after second baseman Kolten Wong. And every year my wife and I spend our anniversary in St. Louis, sitting at Busch Stadium, watching the Cardinals play.

The Cardinals are a huge part of our lives, and so it is hard not being able to watch our team play.

It’s especially tough today because it was supposed to be the home opener for the Cardinals.

I still put on my Cardinals shirt and put the flags out in front of our house, but I didn’t get to watch the game.

I’ve actually never been to Busch Stadium for the home opener since my wife and I go to a game or two in July, but getting to watch the home opener from my recliner is still special, especially with the all the pomp and circumstance the day usually entails.

Sure, this might seem like a petty and inconsequential thing, especially as the death tolls related to COVID-19 continue to climb. I get that. I’m not making light of what is going on and the human toll it is taking. 

However, sports are a distraction. 

Under different circumstances where the country was besieged with a disaster or crisis of this scale, baseball would provide a respite from the negativity. 

I’m not advocating for bringing back America’s pastime just to appease baseball fans because that would undoubtedly result in more spread of the virus, leading to more death. We have to keep social distancing. 

Still, I miss baseball.

So, I hope everyone stays safe, follows the guidelines of social distancing and hand washing, and COVID-19 is beaten. Then I hope baseball comes back. 

Until then, I will continue to get my fix by listening to Cardinals podcasts, such as the Best Podcast In Baseball by St. Louis Post-Dispatch baseball writer Derrick Goold (here’s his Twitter profile too), and watching rebroadcasts of past games when I can. 

Above all, though, I will continue to keep my Cardinal flags flying, especially since I live next to a Chicago Cubs fan.

Obviously this is the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. Since I was a youngster, I have always enjoy looking at this iconic structure. The museum is cool, and you have to ride the tram up to the top. The view is breathtaking. Every year when my wife and I go to St. Louis, we also make a stop here. It’s always worth it.
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About toddvogts 834 Articles
Todd R. Vogts, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of media at Sterling College in Kansas. Previously, he taught yearbook, newspaper, newsmagazine, and online journalism in various Kansas high schools, and he ran a weekly newspaper in rural Kansas. He continues to freelance as a professional journalist from time to time. Also, Vogts is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the Journalism Education Association (JEA), and the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC), among others. He earned his Master Journalism Educator (MJE) certification from JEA in 2022. When he’s not teaching or writing, he runs his mobile disk jockey service and takes part in other entrepreneurial ventures. He can be reached at twitter.com/toddvogts or via his website at www.toddvogts.com.