I rarely read the Daily Emerald. Almost never. But when I arrived for work this morning I found a copy of the August 3 issue on my desk, opened to the guest commentary by Ivan Miller (“Trip to the ballpark uncovers mass apathy; need to drink more beer,” ODE Aug. 3) with a note that I should write some sort of rebuttal.
Here goes.Civic Stadium is indeed old, and in need of major renovation, if not replacement. Over the left field fence rise the Coburg Hills, and Spencer Butte looms over the right. Quite pleasing. One of the very few remaining hand-operated scoreboards sits to the right of the center field batter’s backdrop. Hardly “decrepit.” Certainly not one of the “slums of American baseball.”
I grew up in the press box at Civic Stadium. I would accompany my dad who covered local sports for the Register-Guard, watching the games as only a 7 year old can. He would interview players after games, some of whom went on to play major league baseball. One is now in the Baseball Hall of Fame. I still have autographs from those days. If this makes my father a “freak” or a “geek,” I’m sure he would have been proud to be so labeled. Especially by a tyro.
Then there was this particular game of which Miller spoke. I can’t speak for the other 3,254 people in attendance, but I did care about the game. How many kids growing up dream of playing in the Big Leagues? How many of those end up letting those dreams go the way of other dreams, of cowboys, astronauts and firefighters? Of the Emeralds on the current roster, next to none will make it to San Diego, or Atlanta, or New York. But they have followed through on a dream to
play professional baseball, and they are doing it. There are a lot of other ways to spend one’s summer for an 18 or 19 year old, just out of school. Perhaps in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The characterization of those in attendance at the game as apathetic, interested only in escape via the $1.50 beer, was just silly.
First of all, I don’t drink. Secondly, there were the half dozen or so Special Olympics athletes with whom I was sitting, all of them remarkably up on current events, especially things like recent changes in administrative rules regarding group foster homes.
Finally there were the kids, running through the stands, enjoying snow cones, wearing baseball gloves just in case a foul ball came their way. What did Miller think of the little league players that accompanied the Emeralds’ players out onto the field for the National Anthem? He probably chose to ignore it because he was on a mission to look only for the fly feces in the pepper.
The pre-game barbecues at Emerald’s games allow organizations to treat employees and their families and friends to a good time. Burgers, hot dogs, and yes, even beer. I’ll admit to being a little self-righteous on this point. It bothers me to see people eat and drink too much, then leave shortly after the game begins. But, I accept that maybe, just maybe, not everybody enjoys Single A short-season minor league baseball to the extent that I do. But to paint all of those who attend the barbecues as interested only in getting drunk isn’t really accurate, or fair. Last night at the August 7 game, Goodwill Industries had a group at the pre-game festivities. Hardly the drunken apathetic idiots of Miller’s diatribe.
I follow current events pretty closely, and it can be pretty dismaying at times. A lot of the time. I contribute a lot of time volunteering with Special Olympics, and I contribute regularly to causes in which I believe.
Does enjoying a baseball game make me a lesser citizen of the world community?
Does it mean I just don’t care? Should I be wearing black, moping about with a perpetual look of glum impotent despair on my face?
I believe it was nothing less than irresponsible for Miller to judge the entire audience based on a brief conversation with one drunken woman. Using this methodology, what can I say about the Daily Emerald, the School of Journalism, or even all students? Especially graduate students. If Miller was in an official capacity covering his story, was he reimbursed for the cost of admission to the game? Waste of money in my opinion.
Paul Harvey works in the University Library System
Diatribe wrongly maligns baseball fans
Daily Emerald
August 16, 2006
0
More to Discover