If You Can’t Cheer And Have Fun At A Sporting Event, Then What Are We Doing?
I’m not sure the movie or the television show that I watched when I was much younger that provided me with a saying that I’ve carried with me all my life. If you talk to pretty much any of my family or friends, they will immediately relay that my go-to line and what I truly believe in life is: “Fun is the best thing to have.” Hell, it may even go on my tombstone.
Fun is just what Phillies fans decided to do this weekend when the struggling Trea Turner went up to the plate on Friday night against the lowly Kansas City Royals. A standing ovation greeted the $300 million, under-performing shortstop as he stepped into the box for his first at-bat. Turner stung a chest-level pitch that was caught by Michael Massey. It seemed to be a bit of a letdown at the time. But the constant ovations lasted. Later that game Turner got an RBI that started a weekend in which he went 4-for-12 with a home run and 5 RBI. That home run was a three-run blast that propelled the Phillies to Saturday’s 9-6 win.
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Did the ovations lead to what Turner did? Perhaps. The feelings of a baseball player, especially one trudging through a 162-game season performing well below than what he ever has before, are probably as important as his physical status. And Turner’s feelings certainly seemed terrific this weekend. H answered to a curtain call after the home run and even took out billboards around the city thanking fans for their support.
The detractors to the situation wonder why fans picked him. Wonder why, if you do this for one player, why not do it for all. Ponder why a player making the money Turner does needs to have positive energy around him to perform up to his capabilities. OK, if you want to choose to make those arguments, have at it. But watching the fans and Turner’s teammates embrace the situation should really be all the evidence you need about the positive nature of it.
It was, above all else, fun. And as I wholeheartedly believe, fun is the best thing to have.
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