New Archetype in Sports

Humble beginnings. Breakthrough into the Big Leagues. Early Anointment as Comer. Young Starhood. Explosive Improvement in Performance. Celebrity Nickname. First Denials of Taking Performance-Enhancing Drugs. Denial of Having Used Drugs with Attitude. Sometimes Before Congressional Panel. Falling Silent. In Cloud of Suspicion. Hall of Fame-Not. Conversion. Public Confession Before Oprah. And beyond? Perhaps Hollywood Star. Perhaps Running for Governor. Perhaps even, you know, running for… [This with ht to a New York Times story about someone called A-Rod.]

Playoffs

It’s playoff time in baseball, a time when we awaken to the sport if “our” team happens to be in contention. For many years now that either meant the Detroit Tigers or the Minnesota Twins. It is also an occasion for making valuable observations about human powers of identification. To give an example. Once more the two contenders are the Tigers and the New York Yankees. Leading off the Yankee batting order now is Curtis Granderson. Yesterday Granderson hit a home run to our great consternation—and thus appeared to us as the very Devil Incarnate. Yet, for years now (2006-December 2009), when Granderson came up to bat, all of our hopes rushed out and surrounded him—because he wore the D. He was one of ours. Indeed, when he left, this blog mourned the fact on December 9, 2009. Now we love to hate Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees—for all kinds of mostly irrational reasons. And I’ll tell you what. If A-Rod by some incomprehensible magic should one day become a Tiger player, that would certainly represent a day of great trial for me—because then I’d have to do major reconstruction of my personal love-hate list. Watching one’s own lower self in action is educational—but also safest when watching an innocent pastime like the playoffs.