Perfect day for baseball

Everyone once in a while I get a strong reminder of why I love baseball so much. Yesterday was one of those days.

I was obsessed with watching three baseball games going on at the same time last night (thank you ESPN and your multiple channels!) with the wild card race coming down to the last day of the 2011 baseball season. Hard-core baseball fans like myself were rewarded with two extra inning games and one rain-delayed game (Mother Nature reminding us she holds all the cards). The euphoria I felt with every twist and turn cannot be described. My only disappointment was that I went from the possibility of two play-in games today to none. That’s probably for the best because I would have blown off my weekly boot-camp workout tonight just to see the game.

Everyone will talk about the epic collapses of both the Boston Red Sox and the Atlanta Braves and no question both were ugly. But in truth, the Tampa Bay Rays and the Saux would be playing a game today if Joe Girardi hadn't insisted on keeping his top relievers on the New York Yankees’ roster off the mound last night. Not that I'm blaming Girardi at all because I think it was absolutely the right call, but it's clear that David Robertson, aka Houdini, and Mariano Rivera would have been pitching the 8th and 9th innings under normal circumstances. No way either one of them blows a seven-run lead.

Bud Selig is in heaven right now. As am I. I love this game. I can't wait until tomorrow and Saturday because I'm heading to Yankee Stadium to watch my Yankees beat the Detroit Tigers.

Thanks to SixFourThree via Wikipedia for the image.