Well, I posted “how do you find a bookie?” on facebook because I was thinking I’m a baseball expert and my sister pointed out it might be illegal. After discussing odds, etc, with a friend, I decided it wasn’t worth it to bet on the World Series because I have so little to bet. I’ve never been a gambler; the second I lose a quarter in a slot machine, my feelings get hurt and I quit. It’s nice that there’s a vice out there that I don’t have.

I started watching baseball in 1984, when I was pregnant and having to stay down (long irrelevant story). Baseball is a real game, unlike football where all people have to do is beat each other up. Football is a mob scene to me and I cannot follow a game. Baseball is a game of wits; almost a soap opera—a drama. The pitcher and the batter are in worlds of their own, seemingly oblivious to the millions watching. You get to know individuals instead of hulks. Basketball, it’s okay, but it also moves very fast and it’s hard to focus on technique or strategy.

I started to watch the Cardinals mostly because of Ozzie Smith. Then I noticed the joy in Willie McGee’s eyes—it seemed like he would play for nothing because he loved the game! I started to figure out the game and for several years, followed the play-offs and the world series games.

My memory is so unreliable, but I have some great memories of those years until the strike in—oh, 1990 something. Then I got really mad and stopped speaking to baseball players. My kids and neighbor kids gave me baseball cards and it was a fun time. My favorite memory of those years is when the Padres went against, uh, Detroit??—Dodgers?—and Kurt Bevoqua hit two home runs in one game. The Padres were not a very good team (I gained some respect for Steve Garvey, who never quit playing, even when they were obviously going to lose the game)—I think they lost in five games that year, but Kurt B’s out-of-this-world glee when he hit that second home run was something to see.

The Cards, well, what I remember about them is how inconsistent they were and how they lost their dignity. Throwing bats, yelling, whining, their manager (forgot who it was) got thrown out of a game that went into overtime. Those overtimes were cool, too, so much drama and raw emotion. I came to respect Sparky Anderson’s dignity and calm approach, even when I was rooting for the Cardinals to win against the Tigers.

Haven’t watched a game since the strike. But I put something on FB that got me updates on the Cardinals and noticed they were doing okay and I’ve tried to follow this series. I go to bed pretty early, so I’ve recorded the games–or attempted to, my DVR cut off a couple.

Based on my previously vast experience with the Cardinals, I was going to bet that 1. Rangers would win game 5, in overtime; Cardinals for game 6, with overtime and the Rangers for game 7, to take the series. I think overtime will be involved somewhere. I’m not going to bet mostly due to my own cheapness (not to mention illegalities), but you heard it here, folks. Rangers in seven games with game 6, possibly seven going into overtime. Possibly a brawl in there somewhere. Which will remind me of football.