It’s Time To Enjoy Major League Baseball’s Month in the Spotlight

The 2018 World Cup is over. NBA Summer League? Same thing. What we’re left with, like it or not, is Major League Baseball.

For the next month or so, before college football kicks off, it’s going to be all baseball, all the time. Sure, the NFL’s preseason will have games, but, really, no one cares about those. There will be more trades and signings in the NBA, and those matter, but there won’t be anything live. The BIG3 will have it’s time on FOX, and the second-year league is fun to watch, but even so, it hasn’t cracked the mainstream yet. When it comes to actual sporting events, the kind that matter to millions of people, it’s America’s Pastime or bust.

Regardless of the problems folks complain about, baseball is the sport of the summer. No matter how many times Aaron Judge strikes out or how low Bryce Harper’s batting average is, and no matter how much the Orioles, Mets, and White Sox disappoint you, that’s not going to change anytime soon. We should cherish this four-to-five week period of pure baseball delight. Every sport has their issues, and that’s not going to change anytime soon, either. Enjoy the gigantic slates of games every night, the upcoming trade deadline, and the playoff races. Get behind someone who is chasing a batting title or home run crown. They’re all things that, when you let yourself go a little bit, are as compelling as anything in sports.

Go to a game and get some sun. Watch your favorite team — even if they’re not going to make the playoffs. Read Moneyball or get smarter with Keith Law’s latest book. Try on some Jeff Pearlman. Try a baseball podcast on your way to work. Maybe even head to The Ringer for some absorbing words by Mallory Rubin, Ben Lindbergh, and Zach Kram. Just soak baseball in, that’s all — it’s the time of year where it’s totally acceptable. We’ll be doing it at Slackie Brown — that’s what a week of All-Star festivities in your home town will do to you — and I hope you’re up to it as well.