It's not really a secret that I love baseball and have a slight bias towards the Red Sox.
Monday night, starting lefty pitcher, Jon Lester, threw a No Hitter for the Red Sox in Fenway Park against the Kansas City Royals.
By the numbers:
130 - pitches thrown
52 - years since the last lefty No Hitter
24 - Lester's age
9 - strike outs
8 - months since the last No Hitter (by the Red Sox Clay Buchholz)
2 - walks
0 - complete games Lester pictched prior to the No Hitter
By now you have probably heard (even if you're not a Red Sox fan) that less than 2 years ago, Lester was disgnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma, missing the end of the 2006 season.
In December 2007, it was announced that Lester appeared to be in remission, and he returned to the Red Sox in July 2007, and successfully pitched Game 4 of the 2007 World Series against the Colorado Rockies. And now a No Hitter.
Lester's fairytale night reminds me why I love baseball. It's a game of cameraderie; a true example of a team sport. Would there have been a No-No without Jacoby Ellsbury's diving catch in the 4th? Would it have happened without Jason Varitek behind the plate? Curt Schilling certainly doesn't think so.
No Hitters aren't the result of one play. Rather, they are an epic build up of 9 innings, at least 27 batters and at least 9 other guys who have got your back. There's no other equivalent.
Maybe except for Curling, according to my friend, Molly ("Have you ever seen them go with the broom?").
Curling aside, that's why I listen to 162 games - you never know when something like this will happen, or when it will happen again. Jon Lester has a great story - one which has been done greater justice by many more entrenched than me.
Still, the story reminds me of how fulfilling it can be to be a part of something bigger than yourself. Who is your team? Who is your support group? Who do you owe your successes to? But more importantly, who do you root for? Whose team are you a part of? Whose successes can you celebrate?
What do you champion?
Congratulations to Jon Lester and here's to everyone else who is fighting or has fought cancer.
Comments
great post. One of the things I LOVE about accomplishments or feats in Sports is that it reminds us of a great good or feeling. Like every time the Sox beat the Yankees...it reminds me that cheaters never win ;-)
So Lester throwing the no hitter obviously brings back cancer to the front of mind, and it seems as a world (collectively) we're so focused on other things (oil, wars, politics) and forget that all those things combined don't affect as many people as cancer does. Sigh
MAY 21 2008 AT 7:53 PM
there's a typo above!! UGH, I meant to say "great or good feeling" BOO, never leave comments while on the eBay shuttle
MAY 21 2008 AT 10:31 PM