When I think about “Baseball is Fun,” there are two categories that come to mind first. That’s not to say a whole lot more doesn’t factor into what makes baseball “fun,” in my opinion, but broadly speaking, this is the stuff that gives me that extra warm feeling:
(1) Incredible baseball plays, where you feel like you’re seeing something you haven’t seen before; and
(2) Delightful adjacent moments that aren’t the sport, itself, but are intimately tied to it.
Whatever your feelings about the New York Mets, they certainly gave us both last night in their 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
First, you had Justin Turner sending a Jacob deGrom pitch deep to center field, in what could have been a game-tying shot (and a rare two-run outing for deGrom!). But Brandon Nimmo made one of the best leaping catches of the year, hands down:
Soon thereafter, you had closer Edwin Diaz coming into the game to finish things off, entering to the delightful trumpeting of ‘Narco,’ as he has all season. Except this time, performer Timmy Trumpet was LIVE IN THE BALLPARK TO PERFORM IT AS DIAZ ENTERED:
That is just swell, man. I’m not a New York Mets fan, but I can feel their joy, and I think that’s great for them. Well done, Mets.
Also, in a game like that, you can’t ignore that Jacob deGrom is also a big part of what makes baseball fun, given that he’s one of the best ever: