Baseball and Memories

We went to a baseball game last night and it brought back a rush of memories. My dad and I went to see the Albuquerque Dukes play almost every weekend they were in town. I was about 12 or so and it really was our thing. The sights, sounds, smells of the ball park are indelibly burned into my memory. There is nothing like watching the game being played on the brilliant green grass, the pop of the ball in the glove, the crack of the bat, the vendors yelling "ice cold cokes", "peanuts","get yur cold beer". It is without a doubt one of the best memories I had as a kid.
Then there is the game itself. While baseball to the novice is incredibly simple and almost boring it is to the initiated incredibly complex and cerebral. Homeruns are overrated. Give me a double play, a squeeze play, a beautifully executed sacrifice bunt moving the runner to second base, a diving catch in right field, a running catch on the warning track. Give me a pitchers duel where every pitch is meaningful.
Now I love watching NFL and particularly following the Titans, college basketball is a blast to watch, especially in person. But for pure flashbacks to a simpler time and food for the senses and intellect give me baseball any day.