A new season has begun, new team shirts and hats have been purchased, team schedules are on my phone…home and away, in the middle of the day or at night, players’ birthdays, other important dates, flashcards to memorize baseball phrases and rules are out. My mental checklist of preparing for the season like a player is being checked off.  I’m ready! Ready as a die hard fan? Not really. Ready as a statistics sports analyst? Not that either. What I’m really ready for is what my boyfriend, a baseball agent of many years, and I will be doing for the next 7 months.

Today, Opening Day, I watched a game where his clients were playing.  It was great to see the RBIs (just in case Runs Batted In), home runs and the players’ names mentioned in the news. Cheering for them reminds me of the days of me cheering for my boys when they were in Little League. The days of practicing and video taping in the batting cages, catching and throwing the ball in park and watching highlights of Jeter, who at the time was the only player I knew. I watched his clients and wonder if I pushed harder to have my kids stick to baseball if I would be watching them on Opening Day too. Not sure if I want the Tiger Mom name that bad though. Then I watched a NY Mets vs. KC Royals. Since I was born and raised next to Shea Stadium, yes I would like to think NY Mets would, could, will win. It’s just the start…

In between the games my boyfriend and I talk baseball phrases I heard… What’s around the horn? Can of Corn? Painting the black?  I needed him to show me illustrations and a demonstration. Then it hit me.. After two years of watching games on TV and in the ‘family and friends’ section in the stadiums I realized my knowledge of baseball is as much as when I first met my boyfriend which is still not much. So now I am making an effort and go through a roller coaster ride to retain every baseball fact I can, and maybe take a hitting lesson or two.

Popcorn, Peanuts and Cracker Jacks… Here I go.