The Drubbing

Ten years ago, on September 11th, 2001, one of the worst terrorist attacks on American soil took place physically in New York, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania.  As you can see I mentioned the word physically because to me it took place in every American emotionally. We saw the fear in the eyes of those watching the towers collapse. We heard screams and tones of disbelief.  We saw our flag tattered. We saw our land of the free slowly being bulldozed away.  But in this moment we heard a voice stir in each one of us and remind us not to forget the other statement in our Star Spangled Banner: We are the home of the brave.  This was capsulated to Americans and the world in one moment.  In one pitch.

I find solace in sports.  All sports.  It could be my favorites or my least favorites.  I can actually sit down and watch anything, in both live form or on tv, if it’s an athletic event.  Soccer, hockey, football, baseball, basketball, tennis, golf, bowling, volleyball, cricket, judo, swimming, horseshoes, lawn darts…you get the point.  Ask my wife, she’ll tell you this since it drives her crazy.  ”How can you watch this?”.  She doesn’t want my sarcastic answer so I do what every great husband does,  I turn on Lifetime or anything with Lori Laughlin or Meredith Baxter Birney.

Sports gives me comfort.  Sports help me relieve stress and feel soothed.  There is some type of feeling when following something that’s out of your control but you still feel a part of the experience.  I’ve played sports my whole life but even then you not always in “complete” control.  It all changed 10 years ago and I think many other people were changed during that time as well.

It started when William Howard Taft, our 27th President, threw out the first Presidential ceremonial pitch in American baseball history on opening day 1910. It’s actually the longest standing ritual in professional baseball.  Even Cal Ripkin, Jr. and Brett Farve can’t touch this tradition.  Every President since then has thrown out at least one pitch.  But not one pitch meant more to us as Americans.  Actually, nothing, not one thing, in professional sports meant more to us than this pitch.  This one pitch would symbolize everything to Americans.

So on a brisk October evening in 2001, then President George W. Bush stepped up to the pitching rubber at Yankee Stadium.  Donned with a NYFD jacket and the ball.  Over 57,000 people were cheering and chanting, “USA, USA”.  Millions of Americans were watching intently on tv or listening via radio not knowing they were witnessing a change in America.  Even if you weren’t a sports fan, you were watching.  Now I don’t want to be melodramatic and this isn’t a political stunt so don’t take it that way.  This is after all a sports article and I base a lot of my work on historical facts and a little observation…well more than a little.  All eyes, not on the man throwing the ball, though important, but on the pitch itself.  With this pitch it would symbolize our rebuilding phase in America.  Our strength.  Our sound.  Americans.  All on this one pitch.

For me, looking back, I had this strange feeling come over me while writing this piece.

What if he bounced it?  What if he hit the backstop?  What if he pulled a Randy Johnson vs. John Kruk?

We’ve seen President’s throw horrible pitches in the past.  First pitch guru Taft was saved by Walter Johnson from bouncing it.  Nixon stunk.  Reagan rolled it.  Carter hated it.  Now President Obama threw one of the worst pitches in the history of pitches.  Maybe he should have rolled a hoop out there and sank a three.  Imagine if Bush bounced it.  Would we have felt the same way about our spirits being lifted since that dark September morning?  Though not a policital piece, this is afterall our President.  Our commander-in-chief.  We look to him for guidance and power. Though just a man, he symbolizes the strength of the United States.  The rock. He guides us in all things that he says and does, regardless of agreement or disagreement.

With all this in hand Bush began his walk to the mound in a  stern and authoritative way.  A few waves and a thumbs up.  The President walked right past the ceremonial mound to the official pitching mound not thinking twice about doing so.  He gave a long thumbs up to those in those in the stands and then set his feet.  Will he bounce it?  Will he miss?  He knew he wouldn’t and some where deep down 400 million Americans knew he wouldn’t either.

He didn’t and we all remember. Right down the middle with authority. A perfect pitch.

Professional sports in America are tied to our livelihood.  We look up to our athletes in America probably more than anyone else and you can’t go a day without an event being on TV.  We follow their every move, wear their jerseys or cheer and cry depending upon our teams outcome. That day we didn’t do that for our athletes.  We weren’t thinking about that. Our strength as a nation relied on that pitch. Our power as a nation relied on that pitch.  Our nation was in that pitch.

Most of all, 2,977 people were remembered in that pitch.

And never forget, it was a perfect pitch.