The 2022 Trade Deadline, the BN Blogathon, and Finding the Fun and Love

None of this is really all that serious. I try to keep a level head about what I’m really doing here. What sports are meant to be. Community and entertainment. Fun. And love.

I think this deadline made it a little hard to stick to that way of thinking. Maybe because the scabs of last year’s deadline were still juuuuust a bit pickable. Maybe because it’s harder to stay light and easy when the entertainment hasn’t always been entertaining, now going on its second season. When the very nature of the trade deadline when you’re selling is an acknowledgement that, hey, things suck now, but maybe things can be better later. That is at least 50% not fun. That’s just math.

And then, even when you accept that seller’s trade-off for the second straight season, the deadline doesn’t quite go as you expect it will? When it feels like so much of what happened with Willson Contreras from March until now was simply the worst version of how things could have played out? The seriousness really creeps in.

I don’t think I have the faculties about me right now to talk anyone out of that way of thinking right now (not even myself), but I guess I just wanted to remind us both that this is all supposed to be entertaining. A joyful distraction. It’s why we do any of it.

That’s what informs something like the BN Blogathon. I’m so fortunate and grateful that I get to pair this silly endeavor with a real and meaningful fundraiser for Make-A-Wish. I get to keep a lot of the deadline fun for me, which in turn is hopefully a little fun for you, and in turn allows us to do some real good in the community. Thank you.

Our up-to-the moment fundraising total is now just shy of $16,000, which is fantastic. It’s incredible to me how willing so many of you are to give, and also to know how much impact it has on kids and families who truly need these special experiences. Community. Entertainment. Fun. Love.

As I head off to sleep for the first time in a couple days, I hope I’ll take more of that stuff with me than any lingering confusion or disappointment about how the Cubs handled, or didn’t, some trades. That’s not to say what happens to the team isn’t an important part of our joyful experience, but for today, I just want to let myself remember that it isn’t that serious. The goodness you all showed throughout the Blogathon, and with your support of Make-A-Wish – that’s serious.

All right. My brain is all tapped out at this point. I’m sure this post was riddled with mistakes and incoherence. I swear I edited it. But this is what 40+ hours of intense, sleepless focus on all things baseball produces. Thank you again so much for your support throughout this process. Not just the donations, but the eyeballs. The comments. The questions. The interactions. It’s all such a rewarding, if difficult, experience for me. And I appreciate it.

Take care, all. May we find some more fun and love together later this week.