Play Ball!!!

Dear Readers,

As I'm sure you can tell if you've read this blog long enough, spending two and a half years teaching English in China presented me with many opportunities to give back to the people who have given me so much. But if I were forced to choose one accomplishment that I am most proud of (or at least the one the brings the biggest smile to my face when I think about it), it would probably be baseball.

That's right folks, America's Pastime is now China's Obsession. Back when I was in Jilin, and also when I was in Zhanjiang, I spent a considerable amount of time teaching my students the importance of a strong bullpen and on-base-percentage, the nuances of the infield fly rule and the outfield shift, and the beauty of the grand slam and the suicide squeeze.

And I am happy to report that Chairman Mauer heartily approves of this message. The only thing more beautiful than the knee-buckling change-up of Johan Santana is the way my message spread across China.

Soon posters and billboards were popping up all over the country, as millions of Chinese people were introduced to the greatest game the West has to offer.

And so, with Spring Training coming to a close and Opening Day now upon us, I could think of no better time to share some of my favorite memories from the diamonds of China.

"The Sandlot"
Tucked away in the corner of the lesser of the two soccer fields that Zhanjiang Normal University boasted, this is our very own Field of Dreams. Since soccer and basketball remain to most Chinese the only two outdoor sports of relevance, we didn't have much to work with, but we made the most of it. Every Saturday afternoon for the last two months that I was there, my freshmen and I would gather on the diamond and play some stick and ball. It was glorious.

This was our first group...

...our second...

...and our last. Note the exponential growth of the groups. Once word got around how much fun this new-found past time was, students started lining up to play. Note also that almost all of the players are female.

That just made it all the more special in my book. The funny thing is that women do so much better than guys too. The reason for this is that the guys all try and swing for the fences, and thus strike out - a lot. You know how Carlos Gomez likes to swing so hard he spins around in the batters box? That's a lot like watching Chinese men bat. It's quite comical. Girls on the other hand are content simply to make contact - and so they do. I don't think I've ever had a girl strike out. They almost always get a hit.

Teaching English is important and all, but conjugating verbs and memorizing vocabulary never produced smiles like this...

...or this...

...or this. Folks, this is Missy. Missy posseses one of my favorite smiles of all time. She also hits a mean opposite-field line drive. People often ask me why I love teaching so much. I think this smile is all the answer I need.

What Missy may lack in size, she makes up for in heart and passion for the game. She missed a game one week because she had to take her mother to the hospital. She came to me in class the following week and was almost in tears because she missed the game. I tried to explain to her that her mother's health was more important than a baseball game and that she did the right thing, but I'm honestly not sure she believed me. She clearly loved the game of baseball.

Another standout is Skye. She's got hands like you wouldn't believe. The best 1st baseman I've ever played with, bar none. It didn't matter how crazily I threw the ball to her, she always made the out. She also was one of the fiercest competitors I have ever encountered.

Every game I would pitch to both teams and not hit, so I was essentially playing for both teams. Whenever I made an out for Skye's team, she would give me a big double-thumbs up and an even bigger smile. But when I made an out for the opposing team, she would usually try and throw the bat at me. Definitely a girl after my own heart.

This is Lorelai. Lorelai was not a particulary great player. She managed to hit the ball well, she ran fine, she can throw okay, but nothing she did on the field was especailly outstanding. What set Lorelai apart was her unabashed passion for the game.

Lorelai was the one who was always screaming and hollering during games, cheering her teammates on, encouraging players on the other team, jumping up and down when anyone got a hit. Her excitement was infectious. She also made sure that everyone showed up on time, and that people who had never played before came the next week. She was the best cheerleader I could ever ask for.

But perhaps the most noteworthy player I encountered in Zhanjiang was Aspen. Aspen was the definition of a five-tool player. There wasn't anything she couldn't do on the field: hit for average, hit for power, run, pitch, field, you name it, she did it. And did it exceptionally well.

Aspen also holds two of the most important records in Chinese baseball lore. Not only was she the first person ever to hit a baseball in the entire city of Zhanjiang, but she also hit the first home run. She is without a doubt the Babe Ruth of Southern Chinese baseball.

Every year when I leave a school, I've made it a habit to leave the bat and ball behind. Not only is it a way to honor two particular students who went above and beyond in promoting the sport at their schools, but it's also a way to make sure that the legacy is carried on and the game is continued to be played in my absence. Aspen is now the proud owner of the only baseball bat on the entire campus of 15,000 students - and quite possibly the only bat in the entire city of 7 million. I know she'll do the whole sport proud.

Of course there are countless other girls who made lasting contributions to advancing the sport in China, too many to name. But here's a small sampling...





Who's on 1st? :-)

So like I said, every game I would pitch to both teams (with the wickedest underhand curve this side of the Yellow River), but at the end of every game I would always take a few hacks to show the kids how they do it in the big leagues.

Aspen would pitch and the rest of the students would all spread out in the outfield. If anyone caught one of my hits, I brought them a prize in class that week. Luckily for me and my pocketbook, only one girl ever caught a ball (way to go Marissa!).

It was fun for me (obviously), but it was also fun for the students because despite my chopstick-thin arms, I can still crush a tennis ball when I need to. The "oohs" and "aahs" that accompanied the aerial barrage I unleashed inflated my already China-sized ego in ways you wouldn't believe (or maybe you would).

All year long I kept telling the kids that my goal was to hit a ball over the wall. No one thought it was possible, but I was determined. In the above photo, you see the appartment building with greenish windows? If you enlarge the photo, you can see a small white structure just underneath the far right windows. It's like a tool shed. To this day there is still a tennis ball sitting on top of that roof, delivered by yours truly. Maybe my proudest Chinese baseball moment.

This was the look on everyone's face when I hit it up there:

Shock and Awe.

Some of you may wonder if I found any difference between playing ball in the South compared to the North. Short answer: no. The biggest similarity? I am an idiot. North, South, East, West, it makes no difference. When it comes to competitive sports, I am an idiot.
Case in point:

This is a photo of my very last ball game in Jilin, back in 2007. The young man in the photo is Birdy. It's hard to see in this photo, but Birdy's toe is pretty smashed up. The reason his toe is smashed up is because he was unfortunate enough to be playing catcher when I decided it would be a good idea to slide into home. I of course was wearing shorts and playing in a "sandlot" (i.e. gravel pit), thus my bloodied leg (which still has the scars from that fateful day). But before you pass judgment, please note two things: 1. Birdy is still smiling and 2. I scored the winning run on the play. Was it dangerous? Arguably. Was it idiotic? Definitely. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Now fast-forward two years:

The first game I played in Zhanjiang, I was pitching and there was a play at home plate. In the process of covering home, I managed to not only take out another one of my students (sorry Pheonix!), but somehow managed to scrape up the same leg in the exact same place. Unreal. I basically scraped off all the skin that had regrown over my scars. Not my finest moment. It just goes to show that idiocy knows no geographical bounds. And for those of your concerned about the well being of my student, have no fear...

...the next week Pheonix got her revenge! :-)

Well, if you are still reading this, I congratulate you. I think this has officially become the longest blog post I've ever written. Which is appropriate, considering the subject matter. I know for a lot of you baseball is just a game. But for me it was so much more than a game. It brought me closer to my kids than a textbook ever could. China holds so many wonderful memories for me, but those lazy Saturday afternoons with my students will always be among my favorite.

Thanks for letting me share them with you.