I should start with a little background. I’m a baseball fan. Specifically a Toronto Blue Jays baseball fan. I have loved the game and the team since before my memories begin. One of my first words was ball as in ball game. Flash forward to a few (ahem) years later and I’m screaming in my family room during a pandemic because the Jays just made the playoffs.
Full disclosure, I didn’t even want them to play baseball this year. Me, the life long Jays’ fan. The girl who was cheering on the Jays with her first words. The dye in the wool, true blue Jays’ fan, didn’t want them to play. I mean, there was/is a pandemic raging and I felt guilty their lives were being put on the line, for what? My entertainment? As much as I loved the game, I wasn’t selfish enough to be ok with putting the players and staff at risk. I doubted they could keep everyone safe and still play the game the way it should be played. After a scary start, the MLB seemed to get their Covid testing and protocols in line and I was able to enjoy the game. My expectations were I’m just happy to be watching baseball.
AND THEN THE BLUE JAYS CLINCHED…
Our scrappy, young team has done what few thought possible in 2020 after their dismal 2019 season. They clinched for the first time since 2016. Though I’m full of joy and oh so excited … it’s not the same as 2015 or 2016. Maybe it’s because of the new rules, the shortened season, the expanded playoffs, the fact we can’t attend games, or living in the time of Covid – I don’t know. Given the new rules we couldn’t see the team enjoy their moment in the clubhouse either. In years past, you’d see the clubhouse draped in plastic as the goggle wearing players sprayed each other with champagne and beer. Crowds of fans going wild, celebrating in the stands, in the streets, and in homes across Canada.
This year we did see some joy on the field and a group photo (above), but we didn’t get to celebrate with them this time. Despite how different this feels, it’s nice to have something to cheer for in 2020. The scrappy Jays have given us a glimmer of joy in what looks to be a daunting fall. I know I’ll still be cheering just as loudly as I would have at the Rogers’s Center while decked out in my Jays gear & long blue (playoff) wig. As their playoff T-shirt’s say: #RespectToronto.
Have you enjoyed the baseball season? What team do you support? Did they make it into the playoffs? Let us know in the comments.