Courtesy of Daniel Sullivan.
Baseball, what is referred to as “America’s Pastime” has been around since around 1846. The sport means so much to people around the world and sometimes their love for baseball goes beyond the game itself. What does baseball mean to you? These are some stories from baseball lovers (or fans) about what the game means to them.
Brooke's Story
Brooke is a big fan of the New York Yankees, despite growing up with her mom who is a huge Atlanta Braves fan. To her, baseball means everything.
"It has become more than just watching the game on my end,” she said. “It’s turned into a passion, lifestyle, mindset, and something I cherish dearly. I schedule my days around the time of the first pitch, specifically for the Yankees.”
She says that baseball is her “escape from reality.” When Brooke watches baseball she says she feels as if the world around her goes silent until her phone starts to blow up from the MLB app alerting her Aaron Judge just hit another home run.
Brooke said, “Baseball brings me joy, it brings me happiness, but it also brings tension and stress into my life – that’s also the standard for being a Yankees fan.”
One moment comes to Brooke’s mind when she first realized she knew she loved the game. Last season, Brooke went home for a weekend away from college during baseball playoffs. Since her mom liked the Braves, she was, “without a doubt locked into the series against the Phillies.” Her mom’s favorite player is Austin Riley. During the game they were watching, Riley hit a two-run go-ahead homer and the Braves took the lead.
“Once I felt the wave of excitement radiate through my mom’s energy,” she said, “that was the moment I knew my love for baseball was not going away anytime soon.”
Brooke says her mom was the “overall influence” when it comes to her love for baseball. Hearing all of the stories her Mom shared with her and the energy she had towards the game, all grew Brooke’s love for the sport.
She said, “since high school, [my mom’s] been the biggest Atlanta Braves fan I know, I guess considering we’re in Indiana!”
Despite growing up in a Braves household, Brooke kept up with Aaron Judge since high school which turned her into a Yankee fan. Even though Brooke loves the Yankees, she said the “Braves will always have my heart in some ways.”
Brooke loves how fun it is to watch the Yankees.
She said, “Although being a Yankees fan comes with a lot of ups and downs, it’s always a fun time seeing what they can pull off when you’re least expecting it.”
Brooke has two favorite moments from this season so far. The first would be when rookie first baseman Ben Rice hit three home runs in one game against the Yankees’ rival, the Boston Red Sox. Her second favorite moment was when she went to her first ever Yankee game this past August. During that game, Brooke got to see Judge hit a home run.
Courtesy of Brooke Weinrich.
Fun Facts about Brooke:
Brooke has attended a few baseball games at a couple of different stadiums. Her favorite so far is Yankee Stadium.
“I would have to say the energy, excitement, and overall iconic views came from Yankee Stadium in the Bronx,” she said.
Aaron Judge is by far her favorite player. Although Judge is her favorite, she loves the whole Yankees roster this year and loves to learn about their background and stories.
Besides Yankee players, she also loves to keep up with Ozzie Albies, Harrison Bader, Alec Bohm, Shohei Ohtani, Austin Riley and Bryson Stott.
In the World Series, Brooke would love to watch a Yankees vs. Phillies matchup.
Jordan's Story
To Jordan, baseball makes her think of family. Jordan and her family are Yankee fans.
“Baseball makes me think of my family and where I grew up,” she said. “Loving baseball is just a family trait — and more to the point, being Yankee fans is in our blood.”
Jordan’s parents are from Staten Island, and she was born and raised in New Jersey. The Yankee games are always on in her house. If she and her family are out, “someone needs to have the MLB app on standby to give the play-by-play.” Since Jordan is away at college in Nashville, the game has become more important to her.
“Though I can’t watch all the games with my family like we used to, I think of them every time I put the Yankees on,” she said. “To me, baseball means family.”
Baseball has always been such a huge part of Jordan’s life and she has always loved it.
She said, “I grew up decked out in Derek Jeter gear, spent my teenage years playing softball, and watched the game in the evenings after tournaments.”
Jordan loves baseball and does not know a life without it. If Jordan had to pick a moment when she knew she loved the game, it would be during the offseason
“The offseason drags like you wouldn’t believe — what am I supposed to watch? Football? No! That’s how I knew I loved baseball,” Jordan said.
Jordan’s dad is the one that got her into baseball.
She said “I remember playing baseball in my driveway as a little kid — maybe 4 or 5 years old? My sister and I would stand by the garage door to hit the ball into the street, and my dad would pitch from a few feet away.”
Jordan said at the start, her hand-eye coordination was so bad her dad started to debate signing her up for dance lessons. She ended up having “a great run playing baseball and softball until [she] left for college.”
Jordan owes her experience to her dad, who always helped her and pitched to her on the field to practice.
Jordan’s favorite moment this season happened on July 6. Rookie Ben Rice hit three home runs in one game. He was the first Yankees rookie to ever do that. She thought it was so cool and was excited for Rice.
Fun Facts about Jordan:
Jordan thinks the Yankees will win the World Series this year.
She said, “I’ve been saying ‘this is the year’ every year for a very long time, but this is the year! The Yankees are taking the World Series. Aaron Judge will get his ring.”
She soon followed up with one of the coolest facts about herself:
“I got to sit in the Yankee dugout with my brother’s travel baseball team. My dad barehanded Clint Frazier’s walk-off home run from the outfield bleachers, and we gave Frazier the ball back in exchange for the full dugout experience. That was one of the coolest days of my life. We left that dugout with our pockets bursting. Seeds, tobacco, dirt, gum, Gatorade. If it wasn’t nailed to the ground, we took it home”.
“Here’s my sister and I at our first Yankee game — standing next to Derek Jeter! I’m the one looking over my shoulder.”
Courtesy of Jordan Ludwig.
“Here’s me, my sister, and my brother at a Yankee game in 2023! I’m in the Rizzo shirt. We got to go on the field for batting practice and meet the players. Before the game, we made matching Oswaldo Cabrera necklaces (with his number and the pearls) and showed them to him. So awesome.”
Courtesy of Jordan Ludwig.
My Story
To me, baseball is everything. It is a getaway from life and something I look forward to watching almost every single day. Even when I am out with friends or family and cannot watch a game, I find myself opening the YES app trying to catch a few pitches.
Baseball has also always meant family. As I got older, baseball took on a new meaning of not only family but friends too. Baseball is something I can bond over with the people that I am closest to in my life. Baseball is something that brings me excitement, love, joy, and even disappointment sometimes. As I got older, baseball suddenly became my passion. When I realized I could make a career out of what I loved most in the world, it strengthened my passion for it.
I have loved baseball for as long as I can remember. My dad had me watching the Yankees with him when I was three. I have always loved watching the game, but if I had to pick a moment when I really realized my love and admiration for the sport, it would be in 2008 when I was eight years old. It was the last year the old Yankee Stadium was open. I went with my family on a tour of the stadium and got to sit in the dugout – hours before the second to last home game ever played in that stadium. I was amazed by everything and fell in love. The next year, the Yankees won the World Series, another huge factor in my love of the game. I would try to stay up to watch all of the playoff games.
Courtesy of Anthony Colistra.
Since my whole family is extremely passionate about baseball, they all got me into the sport. More specifically, though, it was my parents. My dad taught me the rules of baseball at a very young age. I would always love to watch games with him, and he took me to my first game when I was five – something I still remember to this day. My mom wasn’t always a fan of baseball. She started to watch it a few years back, and as she started to fall in love with the game, it made me love it more too. Even when my mom was going through her chemotherapy treatments, she had to make sure she watched every game all the way through. Her passion for the game made me love it even more. It became almost routine for us to watch the games together every single night. I am so thankful for baseball since it has brought me and will continue to bring me so many amazing memories with the people that mean most to me.
My favorite moment of this season so far was when I went to a game on my birthday, which happened to be the day after opening day. Aaron Judge hit a home run in the first inning that was an absolute bomb. Stanton and Rizzo also hit homers that day and it was so fun to watch. Also, any time Juan Soto hits a home run is a top moment for me, so I have had about 38 (and counting) of those happy moments so far.
Fun Facts about Me:
My favorite team is the Yankees and I am biased, but Yankee Stadium is also my favorite.
Anthony Volpe is my favorite player. He has turned out to be a great shortstop and he grew up a huge Yankee fan, which makes his story even better. Volpe is my favorite because the passion he has for the game is visible and he has a drive to always do better.
Gerrit Cole also has a special place in my heart since he was my mom’s favorite.
Courtesy Meaghan Sullivan.
My realistic World Series matchup is Yankees vs. Phillies – and the Yankees will win. My unrealistic matchup is Yankees vs. Mets, just because of how exciting that would be.
Edited by Brittany Snow
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