Something strange is happening in my city of Toronto. It is the start of hockey season and the trials and tribulations of the Maple Leafs should be front and centre. But this year the whole city is focused on the Toronto Blue Jays. Baseball fever has taken over the city as the boys of summer make a run in the playoffs. I am faithfully watching the games but I am still a hockey fan at heart, and here are my reasons why.
Baseball or hockey?
To start with, when I turn the hockey game on TV I always make a point of watching right from the beginning of the telecast; there is just something so special about hearing the national anthems, the introduction of the starting line up and the ceremonial puck drop. Thinking it would be similar for the baseball telecast, I tuned in right on time, listened to the announcers babble on about the game and then it was right to the first pitch. I miss the pregame formalities and my cats miss me singing the national anthem along with the crowd.
Something I have always found strange about baseball is that the manager sits in the dugout in full uniform. Maybe it would just look strange if the manager was sitting in the dugout spitting out sunflower seed shells while dressed in a suit, or worse spitting out a fountain of chewing tobacco. However I really don’t think he needs to be in full uniform for his run to the mound to talk to his pitcher. On the other hand, hockey coaches are seen behind the bench dressed in a suit and tie, commanding the respect they deserve. Just imagine a hockey coach skating across the ice to discuss a call with the referee or skating down to his goalie to see how he is feeling or what he wants to eat after the game.
The slow pace of a baseball game is such a contrast to a hockey game. Line changes in hockey often happen “on the fly” and non-stop periods of action can extend for several minutes until a whistle is finally blown and exhausted players from both teams make their way to their respective benches. In baseball, play moves at a snail’s pace. Between every pitch the pitcher and the batter carry on an entire conversation in sign language, the batter readjusts his stance, then steps away and does it all over again. Just imagine if prior to every face off the goalie skated out to have a conversation with the centre, and then both the wingers joined in the conversation, and finally the two defensemen joined in.
Bench clearing brawls became history in the NHL many years ago with the introduction of the “third man in” rule. In baseball, bench clearing brawls are relatively common but nothing much really happens. Twenty players rush into the field jostle with players from the opposite team and when the music stops and the dancing is over they return to their respective dugouts. At least when hockey players fight they really fight and actual punches get thrown, bones get broken, teeth get knocked out and there is real blood. Players usually make their way to the trainer’s table afterwards to get sewn back together so they can get back on the ice. It’s those scars and missing teeth that make hockey players so attractive; what young lady can resist the toothless grin of Alex Ovechkin or perhaps more famously Bobby Clarke?
Although baseball games have brief breaks between innings, the seventh inning stretch is really the only time that is long enough to allow a bathroom break and time to make a quick sandwich if you are at home. If you are at the game and you have to wait in line for food there is no way you will make it back to your seat without missing some of the game. Hockey games have two intermissions of fifteen minutes each allowing time to visit the loo and get refreshments.
And that brings me to extra innings. As I suffered through the never ending fourteen-inning game last week I kept hoping the game would end so I could have something substantial eat. The snacks I kept grabbing between innings just weren’t doing the trick. And although the extra innings were full of tension they just didn’t have the excitement of overtime. There is nothing in all of sports that compares to sudden death playoff overtime in hockey. The pace of the game actually speeds up in overtime, or at least it feels that way, and those twenty minute intermissions are necessary to get your heart rate back into a normal zone.
Growing up attending hockey games, most Canadians are very familiar with the public address announcement at the start of each game: “Pucks leave the ice at a high rate of speed, please pay attention at all times.” Fans know that these flying pucks are extremely dangerous and the best defense is to duck out of the way and to never try and catch the puck. Perhaps Harold Reynolds this explains why Canadians don’t know how to catch foul baseballs.
So as the Blue Jays move onto the ALCS I will still be cheering them on, but my Canadian blood will always be a true fan of the good old hockey game.
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