Real Women Love Baseball

Yes, Women love baseball Too!

You know who you are.  Your wardrobe consists mainly of tees and hoodies embellished with the name of your favorite team in rhinestones.  You have every piece of matching team jewelry and blingy accessory that you can find.  You are the ultimate baseball fan. 

But not all women are fans of bling-covered baseball items.  Some just stick to the baseball and skip the bling. Their preference is to wear only fan gear in the colors of the team and never wear pink (gasp!) gear.  That makes them no less of a baseball fan. 

 

Bling or no bling, there seems to be a number of female baseball fans out there.  Not just fans, but women who know baseball. 

…who know all the players on their favorite team's 40-man roster

…who keep score at a game

…who routinely win their fantasy baseball leagues

These women love baseball and like to display it; they want to be known as smart baseball fans and not just Bleacher Babes. 

I’d like to think of myself as a smart baseball fan (with bling).  So, outside of liking to watch our sons play, what is it about baseball that attracts these smart female baseball fans such as me? 

                                                                                                         

First, baseball is about family and fun.  Think about the last time you attended a Pittsburgh Pirates game.  The seats are filled with families.  Sunday is Kid’s Day at PNC Park.   In my opinion, there is no other professional sport that brings people together quite like baseball. At the stadium during a game, strangers become friends.  You cheer together, high-five the people who are sitting in seats around you and maybe even “booooo” collectively.  And who can resist standing and singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” during the seventh inning stretch?  Adults and kids love this! You’ll find yourself putting your arm around the person next to you and singing and swaying along. Will you look silly when you do it? Probably, but look around. Everyone is doing it! After all, at PNC Park, "We are Family" at each and every game! It's just one of those amazing baseball customs that is always fun, even when you are sober.  Trust me, when it's all over with, you'll want to do it again. I'm smiling thinking about it, and I'm nowhere near a ballpark at the moment. 

Second, baseball is a mental game.  I love the mental aspect of baseball.  It makes me think.  This took me a few years to grasp.  I hear a lot of people say they don't understand the appeal of baseball because it's "slow", or "boring", that "nothing happens", that it "takes too long". These people "know" how the game is played — understand that three strikes equal an out and that the way to home is via the base paths — but they don't appreciate the details that make the game what it is.  Entire athletic productions are happening on the field…

 with glances exchanged and glances avoided

with an obsessive amount of adjustments in gear

with signs given and signs missed

and in balls dropped and balls misthrown.

This is what I absolutely love about the game of baseball.  In one game I can go through a plethora (love that word) of emotions…excitement, anger, pleasure, disgust, anxious, awed, fear, nervousness.  Did I mention I love this game?

Last, and this will sound shallow, but…….MLB players are HOT.  Even more superficial sounding is mentioning that they all wear tight pants. But it just warrants being said, because it is a definite plus of going to the ball park.  I’m going to be blunt about this….. There are few other sports in which the male shape is so plainly on display.  But the sensual appeal of baseball goes far beyond ripe rear ends, phallus-shaped sports equipment and metaphors in which bases double as sexual markers.  If you pay close attention to the game, you begin to appreciate a masculinity not defined by muscles or money but by hard work and humility. I believe that in a culture full of exhibitionism, overconfidence and chest-thumping men, there's nothing sexier than a guy who keeps his head down, shushes and plays well with others.

Of course, there are many other reasons why I love baseball, but these, along with watching my son play, are the main reasons why I live for baseball season. And I have discovered over the years that even a terrible season cannot break my love for this game.

It’s time to put on my sparkly Pirate gear and matching accessories and watch the game.  Let’s Go Bucs!