What a painful night we had last night! If you happened to watch the Ranger's game, you'll know what I'm talking about. But if you didn't have this misfortune to witness the game, here's what happened: the Rangers lost the playoff game to be eligible to play a wild-card playoff for the playoffs (or something ridiculously complicated like that). Let's just say that MLB is trying to get as much TV time as possible by allowing multiple Wild Card teams to play for a Wild Card spot in the playoffs. And the Rangers blew their chance.
To make matters worse, we allowed our 5 year old to stay up past his bed time to witness the fiasco. In hind sight, this probably wasn't our smartest move since he skipped his nap yesterday afternoon. But how do you tell a 5 year old he can't watch the Rangers' most important game of the year? So Daddy let him stay up.
The crowd and the team seemed to come alive in the 8th inning. This, of course, gave us a false hope that a come-back was going to happen. It really seemed like rally time. Sadly, nothing exciting happened. Except, maybe the Rays got another run that inning? or maybe just guys on base?
I don't know. It was sorry. We ended up losing by 3 or 4 runs. I can't even remember, because I was so disgusted. It was a typical Ranger fan experience. Time to flip channels, move on, and officially get out your football fan gear out (although our football teams aren't any better around here!!!).
As I was contemplating what exciting show to watch on my DVR after the game last night. I heard it. Someone was sobbing in the living room. There was real crying, real tears, and loud gasps coming from my 5 year old. He was devastated that it will be months before opening day. That means (gasp!) no baseball for like 5 or 6 months!!!!
That's when I realized that my little ones have no concept of cheering for a baseball team that doesn't make the playoffs! Since he can remember (and since Boy #2 was born), the Rangers have been serious playoff contenders. My little boys have no idea what disappointment may be in store for them if they continue to be Rangers fans. But last night gave them a little taste of reality.
Last night also provided an excellent opportunity to reinforce the concept of good sportsmanship and the fact that baseball is simply a "game." My best guess is that I'm going to have to reiterate those talking points in the near future as our favorite football teams take the field. So, it's probably good to get it out there for him to think about until then.
Anyway, bye-bye baseball. Thanks for a few good years of October fun. But thanks for giving me my October back. You know, the kind where I actually get to see my husband and enjoy not getting soaked or frozen at playoff games. This may be a new kind of October for my boys, but for me it's like getting the chance to enjoy the good old days.
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