At least he didn't resurrect the "Lastros" that makes me want to spit in their open mouths.
I was born in Austin and my dad was a baseball player - he had an offer from the Braves to play minor league ball (he was a catcher) but he decided to get married instead. I guess he figured he wasn't going to make it to the bigs or he was too crazy about my mom, I don't know. He played fast pitch church league when I was a kid until his back started to act up in the late 60s. It was always a thrill to go to those games and watch those guys gun that ball.
We usually went to a couple of games a year in Houston, since it was the closest pro team. The earliest game I remember was '65 or '66 at the Dome against the Phillies. I just remember the massive ballpark and watching the game, not any of the players or who won. Once we got all of the living generations to go, meaning it was me, my father, my grandfather and my great-grandfather, which was very cool. Big Pap-Paw was probably in his early 90s but still a large, robust man. He had a little ranch and worked it until he was 97, I think.
Despite the Astros games, I was an American League fan first and foremost. My earliest baseball memory is standing next to my father while he was sitting in a chair, watching a game on TV. He said, "You know who that guy is? The catcher? That's Yogi Berra." All my favorite players were AL guys - my dad's favorite player was Ted Williams, and mine was Al Kaline for no good reason. Loved the history of the game and paid more attention to the AL players. Lived and died with the '68 season for the Tigers and I have clear memories of watching the World Series on television at elementary school. I loved that feeling that nothing was more important than the Series - everywhere you went it was on transistor radios or televisions, and people stopped to pay attention to the game, it was a special event for the whole country. The fact that they were day games made it even more special.
I hated that I couldn't see any of my favorite players in Texas because there were no AL teams, so I never got to see Kaline or the Tigers in person. Of course, that all changed when the Rangers came but I only went to one game in Arlington during the 70s and saw Yaz and the Red Sox. I enjoyed the game, but it still meant more to me and seemed more fun to go to the Dome. I got to see Bunning, Marichal, Mays, Bonds, Dick Allen, Carlton, Rose, Stargell and dozens of other Hall of Fame caliber players through the years. I went much more often to Houston during the 70s and solidified that the Astros were, indeed, my favorite team.
I moved to Houston in 1981 after college and went to a lot of games. I absolutely loved being able to go so often and that's what I miss the most about living there. Over time I've learned to appreciate National League ball much more and, other than going to see Nolan Ryan pitch often in Arlington I've paid much more attention to the Senior Circuit. My following of the Astros was really always there, it just developed into a much stronger bond as I got older. I've taken both of my daughters to several games and I'm sure they'll be good memories for them, but I doubt that they'll be as special as the ones I have of going with my father. That's the real connection for me.
Fuck the Cubs.
