America's Game

Explaining the game of soccer to a 5 year old is pretty simple:
1. Both teams are trying to get the ball in the goal.
2. Only the goalie can use his/her hands.


That's it. Done. No other information is necessary to follow what's going on in the game.

Explaining the game of baseball to a 5 year old requires answering 947 questions... and counting. 

Thanks to Groupon, we took the boys to see the Salem Volcanoes (Single A team from the San Fran Giants) play a Sunday evening baseball game. It was the perfect summer evening - 80 degrees, sunny, seats in the 4th row behind the home team, and all the fun that comes with a small town baseball team. It's such a great slice of America to stroll into the stadium, stand for the anthem sung slightly off key, watch the local businesses with their various promotions, and sit back with a beer for a little baseball.

Of course, adding two curious kids to the mix quickly shifts the focus of the evening. Thankfully, there were also lots of other families around us answering the same never-ending slew of questions that come with trying to explain baseball to young fans. We set the stage fairly well and Owen understands the concept of "hit the all and run" just fine.  Of course, the FIRST BATTER of the game ended with the obscure rule that you can run on a swinging third strike if the catcher drops the ball. Um... sorry kids, can't really answer the "why" on that one... who wants a hot dog?!