BREAKING: Watching Baseball is Fun! Braves 7, Reds 4

Pardon my editorial, but I'm going to vent/rant a bit.

Actually, check that...don't pardon it, read it. Read the hell out of this.

I didn't get into watching baseball because it was something I sought to critique. There was never any inkling in my 5 year old body that suggested I should ever, ever feel anger at anything surrounding the game that my father had emphatically suggested I give a chance to. That's the way I was brought into learning the ins, outs, and nuances of a sport that is as old-fashioned, traditional, and superstitious as it gets.

I'm getting older now. I am, really. 30 is nothing to sneeze at. Literally, you can sneeze and throw your back out in the process. I've spent 25 years playing and watching many, many athletics. I played lacrosse, soccer, and basketball through high school and lacrosse through college, and I'm well aware of competitive nature, scouting, and the use of statistical analysis to break down games. Believe me, there are many, many ways you can educate yourself both through listening and research to make you think you know everything there is to know about a topic.

Believe me also when I say that it can drive you mad if you take it too seriously.

Believe me also when I say that when you reach that point and you attempt to convince people that you're right, you're always right, and that you'll always be right, you're going to do nothing but frustrate your audience.

So don't. Just, just don't. Step back, take a breath, and realize where the hell you are, we are, and where the Cincinnati Reds are. There is nothing about this team to be mad about. There is nothing about this team to be mad about.

Seriously, there is nothing about this team to be mad about.

I mean, why? Why the hell would you be mad about this team? Why?

The 2012 Reds had the best pitching staff in the history of the franchise, and they brought them all back. All of them. All. Relievers, starters, all of them. You can't be mad about that.

The Reds have the best LH hitter in the game. They have him signed until your kids will be old. Can you get mad about that? Remember when the Reds had no money and were talking to no one? Now the Reds have all the money in the world and want to sign all of their good players! Enjoy that, will ya? Please?

I don't get the negativity. This is a franchise that has been subpar, ineffective, and poorly run for the better part of my life. The 80's were a scandalous joke. The 90's, save for an amazingly improbable and fantastic 1990 run, were underachieving and depressing. The 2000's had Jim Bowden in charge and, well, just woof. We're in the glory days now, and this team is on pace to win 90 games despite losing LF1, LF2, SP1, and C1 so far.

Sigh.

I started this by telling you all that I didn't get into watching baseball with criticism in mind. I'll end this by saying that I sure didn't get into writing about baseball with criticism in mind, either. I got into this because I love the game, and I hope that people may well glean some tidbits from me that I was able to glean from those I read.

It's an objective sport. It's a subjective sport. If you've found this post on its little corner of the internet, odds are you care about baseball enough to acknowledge both of those portions. If that's the case, then embrace it. That's why most of us are here. Just because some people watch games, see a loss, and want to watch the world burn doesn't mean they're right or that you have to put up with them.

Don't fart in our baseball car. We'll all get stuck having to smell it, and it's too loud and annoying to carry conversation when we have to roll the RRmobile's windows down.

The Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game

The Reds, because they kick ass, take names, and are a hell of a formidable baseball team regardless of what some people want to make you think.

Key Plays

When Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Bronson Arroyo, Jay Bruce, Johnny Cueto, Mat Latos, Aroldis Chapman, Jonathan Broxton, Ryan Ludwick, Ryan Hanigan, and Logan Ondrusek all looked at Walt Jocketty and said "yeah, this team has a kick-ass core and is good enough to win not one, but many World Series. I'll sign up for multiple years for that...hell yes I will."

Other Notes

• Listen to a good tune and shake off that crap negativity. Ain't nobody got time for that.