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Location: The back alleys of Hong Kong and sometimes Brussels, Belgium
242 posts, read 268,681 times
Reputation: 195
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What I don't get about baseball is why so many players chew and spit tabacco. It makes no sense to me why they do this in baseball, and no other sport. You never see people in football huddles, tennis players, soccer players, or basketball teams chewing tabacco. This is just another reason on my list why I dislike baseball. Anyone else agree or feel the same way about this sport?
I'm no fan of watching the players expectorating globs of black goop on the field, but that isn't enough to make me start disliking baseball. I also find it off putting when football players feel compelled to stage chest beating celebrations of their ferocity following their every on field success, critical or routine, but that hasn't been enough to make me stop watching football.
What I don't get about baseball is why so many players chew and spit tabacco. It makes no sense to me why they do this in baseball, and no other sport. You never see people in football huddles, tennis players, soccer players, or basketball teams chewing tabacco. This is just another reason on my list why I dislike baseball. Anyone else agree or feel the same way about this sport?
I disagree, it doesn't bother me a bit.
Can't wait for the new season to start, and see the great improvement in the Cleveland Indians!
Location: The back alleys of Hong Kong and sometimes Brussels, Belgium
242 posts, read 268,681 times
Reputation: 195
I guess what I'm getting at is as humans most people are like lemmings and just follow the crowd because they see someone else doing something. To me I view the chewing and spitting of tabacco as a way for these people in baseball to hide some kind of insecurity as if they would be left out of the group if they didn't chew. Same goes for other routines in other sports. Like boxers wearing a certain looking outfit to train compared to when a marathon runner decides what clothing he's gonna put on to train. I mean, they are going for the same 5 mile run today, so why should one guy feel like his attire should look different? Chewing tabacco during baseball is the same as getting a tattoo as far as I'm concerned because if you were the only person in the world, you wouldn't be doing either one because there would be no reason since nobody else would be in the world with you. Tattoos to me are just a way to show people something and most people get them because of the attention factor or because they want 'someone' to notice it, regardless of who that is. This is like guys who suddenly decided to chew tabacco or do other things that really have no solid meaning regarding the sport itself in which they play.
Maybe the younger players chew because they see older players chewing, and they do it to be accepted. Maybe it's just a nervous habit. Whatever the reason, until they start playing baseball on hardwood floors, I say let it fly.
Now, if you were concerned about batters stepping out of the box and doing everything but composing a new national anthem, I might be more sympathetic.
It's part of the tradition, do you have a problem with batters adjusting themselves on camera too?
During the 1971 World Series between the Orioles and Pirates, there was one game where the Orioles built a big early lead and won easily. In the late innings of that game, announcer Curt Gowdy made the comment, "Well, it looks like Earl Weaver has things well in hand now." Just as he said it the cameras cut to a shot of Earl Weaver in the dugout, where he was engaged in scratching his balls.
I'm no fan of watching the players expectorating globs of black goop on the field, but that isn't enough to make me start disliking baseball. I also find it off putting when football players feel compelled to stage chest beating celebrations of their ferocity following their every on field success, critical or routine, but that hasn't been enough to make me stop watching football.
Took the words right out of my mouth!
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