The way Arizona State University was eliminated from the 2009 College World Series was almost as heartbreaking to me as the way Carolina played against ASU two nights before. ASU scrapped to break a 2-2 tie in the top of the 9th and entered the bottom of the inning ahead 3-2.
Then Texas catcher Cameron Rupp launched a 3-1 fastball at the waist and straight down the middle over the batter’s eye in centerfield, tying the game 3-3. The next batter, Connor Rowe, golfed a first-pitch changeup over the leftfield wall. Game over, Texas wins, 4-3.
It’s one of the greatest endings to a college baseball game I’ve ever seen. The drama, the emotion, the clutch performances from both sides. “This is something they’re going to remember forever,” said ASU coach Pat Murphy after the game. “They” being his players, Texas’s players, the fans, the umpires, everyone.
This is why I love baseball. The anonymous can become heroes in an instant, and that’s what happened last night. It sucks for Arizona State, it’s heaven on earth for Texas. There will be a tomorrow, there will be new games, but there will rarely be a game like this one. Sports, like life, are ever-changing, never-stopping, constantly moving forward, but it’s the memories they create that make the games beautiful.
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June 21, 2009 at 4:24 pm |
Agreed about what I love about baseball as well. The fact that Don Larsen, a nothing-much pitcher, on one day, did something that no one else ever did. Not Whitey Ford, Cy Young, anybody. And that is awesome.
June 21, 2009 at 6:11 pm |
Yeah man, Larsen’s story is awesome. He’s one of those names in baseball synonymous with greatness, a legacy brought on from one phenomenal day.