Well, actually, my first baseball junk mail of the year is what arrived in my mailbox today. A sporting-goods chain sent me their baseball catalog. I guess because I bought a bunch of Nationals clothes and stuff there last summer, I’m probably qualified on their mailing list as, maybe, a youth baseball coach or something.
Or maybe it’s because as an aging boomer, I’m supposed to stay forever young. Who knows? I was a terrible baseball player as a kid, so I’d be no better as a 53-year-old guy.
Ryan Zimmerman has reached the stage of budding stardom where a recognizable picture of him is the background of the first inside page. No team logo on his cap, though. So he’s not a generic National, but rather Ryan of all baseball. (I think I can also recognize the Orioles’ Miguel Tejada behind some text, but Zim’s the one who is recognizable and looking right into the camera.)
An adult-sized Louisville Slugger bat sells for $90.00. Next time I see six or seven bats broken during a big-league game, I’ll bear that in mind.