Weird thoughts...

[GKreindler]

Hey everyone,

I've been thinking about something for a while, and I thought you guys on the board might be perfect to broach the subject with. The only problem is that I'm having quite a hard time articulating it, so if it rambles for a little bit, I apologize. And certainly if you make it to the end and have no clue what the hell I'm trying to say or ask, I again apologize.

So, in our hobby, names like Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Ty Cobb, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams and Jackie Robinson ring pretty loudly. Being some of the greatest players to ever wear spikes, in terms of collectability, they'll always be well-known, and highly sought after. Also, they're many of you who actually had the privilege of seeing some of those players play in person, be it at the beginning or in the twilight of their respective careers. In a way, many of you grew up with them, collecting their baseball cards, watching them on the field, following their box scores, and even hearing other people spin vivid stories about their profound talents.

Now, it's probably safe to say that there aren't many people around anymore who have seen Gehrig or Ruth (and plenty of the other deadball era players) in person, and I would imagine that each day, that number gets smaller and smaller. Surely, most of that number has nothing to do with this industry either. But, the spirit of these great names is somewhat kept alive through that same industry.

What I'm curious about is, what do you think is going to become of baseball history in another 50 years? How are people going to remember the game? Those of you who got to see Mantle play, I assume you tell your kids about the man and the thrill of seeing him on the field. Even, if you just missed his career, your father or grandfather probably spun some tales for you about the Mick, and maybe even their other heroes of the past. But at what point do these stories become - pardon the expression - antiquated? When a kid gets a game-worn jersey patch or something in a pack of baseball cards, is he/she really going to appreciate what they have in their hands, or is it just going to be another card that's worth a lot of money?

In essence, I find myself wondering who I'm going to tell my kids about. Granted, I don't have any right now, and even if I did, I would imagine that they'd still be years away from actually appreciating the game on that kind of level. By then, am I going to speak of the great Mattingly, Jeter or Rivera - the players that I grew up with? Or maybe what little I can expound upon the careers of Mantle and Maris - the guys my father grew up with? Or, are they just going to look on the Internet and in books for that kind of stuff? I mean, if you wanted to learn about Derek Jeter fifty years from now, you can be sure that you'd have hundreds of games, interviews and everything else at your fingertips. With all of that media, you can almost relive his career from the very beginning, and very easily place them in the context of their eras.

So, where do the hallowed names of Gehrig and Ruth fit in for future generations? I mean, 'yes', we'll still have the artifacts, books and cards, but what gets lost in translation? What will my kid's impressions be of them? And my kid's kids? Are they just going to be these old figures with famous names that don't even seem real?

I suppose for collectors, it's rather different. Nostalgia runs in our blood, and these people are more alive to us than some of our real-life friends (ain't that the truth). But obviously as collectors, we only represent a small portion of the population. And the way the curb of entertainment is going, I feel like the fans who are getting into baseball are fewer and fewer. In the under-40 demographic, the sport can't be doing all that well, can it? I guess in America, something like football or basketball is just sexier. It makes for a more exciting thing to watch, or even play on an Xbox.

I guess what I'm getting at is, does this all mean that the mass appreciation of this great sport on such a deep level die with us? If so, can it be prevented?

That's all I got.

Graig