View from the Couch

BY BILL LEEMAN

When the moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars, then peace will guide the planets, and love will steer the stars!   This is the dawning of SPRING TRAINING, and the first game was on the radio today. 

All is right with the world.  

There's something about hearing Jon Miller's voice doing baseball on the radio that means everything is all right.  

We are in tune with nature.   The planets are lined up.   There is order in the universe, and hope for all mankind.

Well, maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but that's what it feels like to me.  

First batter up, Rowand: a solid single to center.  Ahhh, man, that's nice.   Next batter, Fred Lewis.  Triple down the right field line, scoring Rowand.  Oh boy, this is starting to be fun.  Then a strike out, then Aubrey Huff.   Let's see what he can do.   He's the guy who's supposed to be our power hitter, at least he's the closest we've come to having one since you-know-who left.  First pitch he sees:  Bam!   A two run shot right out of the park!   Man!  Talk about love in the air!   We could definitely get excited around here!

So as we were listening, I was telling my wife how everything is in tune, that all God's creatures are in harmony, and things just look right with the world when baseball is on the radio, and she said "Yeah, things are all right for you, Buster..." or something like that, proving that you don't really have to be a baseball fan to appreciate the game on the radio.

Never mind that our Gigantes are sans World Series rings for close to sixty years.   Never mind the powers that be in the A.L. East.   Never mind that our hopes may be dashed against the rocks before it's over.  We don't need to think about any of that now.  We can just sit back, listen, and enjoy.

You know, I've recently been in an argument with a good friend over who is the biggest jerk, Mark Magwire or Barry Bonds.   Oh, we've been going at each other.   Back and forth.   Getting mean. 

Then, I hear the dulcet tones, the sterling enunciations, the mellifluous melody that is the voice of Jon Miller, and all is forgiven.

And that my friends, is the wonderful thing about Spring Training.   Baseball is here again, and we get to enjoy the games.   Nothing riding on it, just relaxed baseball, the way it was meant to be.

What a wonderful world.