Baseball Games

Watching my first and second Major League Baseball (MLB) games ever at Nats Park (Washington D.C.) and Camden Yards (Baltimore, MD)!

I’m finishing up my blog posts for the year 2025, even though today is New Year’s Day 2026. I went to my first two baseball games last year! I went to a Nats x Mets game on Tue. 8/19/25 and I went to an Orioles x Yankees game on Thu. 9/18/25. I used to be a bigger baseball fan when I was younger, but over the course of time lost interest in following the sport closely. When I was young and living in New England, I saw the Red Sox win two World Series in the 2000s. That was pretty exciting and I followed the sport and knew some of the players, but not the rules seriously. Before 2025, the last time I seriously watched a baseball game was the 2016 World Series with the Chicago Cubs winning. I had a co-worker who was a big baseball fan and we watched one World Series game in College Park, MD. He taught me some of the rules of the game and I was impressed by his passion. This co-worker played in high school and that passion was infectious.

I found the baseball experience at Nats Park and Camden Yards to be different. Nats Park seemed to be more modern, but did not have as passionate of a fan base. Camden Yards was older, but had a rustic charm. Moreover, the fans in Baltimore seemed more loyal and passionate. Both games were memorable, but I didn’t really understand what was really going on in the game; I definitely did not stay until the end of each game. I think from my experience, baseball is more of a social event. People go with friends and family to enjoy the scenery, expensive food (i.e. hotdogs?), socializing, etc. There are some serious fans (think sports betters) and season ticket holders that are actively watching the game for the game itself. Otherwise, baseball is more of a fun/social event to take our minds from daily life and work.

However, I did have a magical baseball experience later last year. I watched the World Series Game 7 between the Blue Jays x Dodgers (played in Toronto) in a bar on Sat. 11/1/25. I had no intention of watching the game, but a friend of mine who was following the World Series wanted to see it and knew that this was going to be a big one. I went with him to the bar and we spent ~4 HOURS watching perhaps one of the greatest baseball games ever, capping off one of the greatest World Series ever. I learned a lot about the rules of baseball from him: strikes, strike zone, balls, walks, etc. and finally felt like I was following and understanding the game. The Blue Jays looked like they had it in the bag and that they were going to get the victory. But boy, the Dodgers were formidable. They never gave up and never stopped fighting. They had every reason to throw in the towel given the circumstances, but they kept pushing and pushing and playing their game. Finally when the big crucial moments came up, they made all the right plays. In the end they were awarded a victory against all odds. That’s the heart of a champion and I have to say I took inspiration from that. It was a wonderful experience and reiterated my belief that in order to win in anything, it’s about never quitting and never giving up until the very end. Champions win because they want it more than their competitors and they never stop going for it!