College or Pro?

    As this college baseball season approaches its climax, it brings the question of which is better, college or pro sports to my mind.  And to any true sports fan, the answer is obvious.  College sports beat pro sports by a score of 243-2, and that's being generous to the pro's.  If you would have asked me ten years ago, I would have said that pro sports were better.  I would have been wrong then too, but that's what I would have said.  That was before I saw pro sports for what they really are, a business looking for profit.  Now, I'm not saying there aren't a few exceptions to the rule, but their aren't many.

    College sports are still about the games themselves.  Not about individuals.  Winning is actually more important than looking good.  Basketball not included.  In college sports, you can have loyalty to a team for your entire life.  You know that every player will only be there for four years, so you have to love the team.  For those of you that haven't ever watched the College World Series in baseball, do it next week.  It's completely different from any baseball you've ever seen.  The players actually root for each other.  They are always standing in the dugout and paying attention to the game.  They all sport rally caps if the team's down in the late innings and just as many people come out of the dugout to congratulate a sacrifice bunt as a home run.  There is an air of excitement throughout the whole game.  Just knowing that the guys you're watching are not getting paid to do it.  There's a certain part of you that feels a thrill when a Senior, who has never started, pinch hits in the late innings and comes through with a hit.  This guy has no chance of ever playing pro baseball, but the smile on his face makes you remember that some people do still play this game because they love it.  How many players can you name on your favorite college baseball team's roster?  Probably none.  Because they haven't been overkilled by the media yet.  It's the same way in most other college sports as well, excluding football.  You root for the team.

    Pro sports.  I can't even say it without a scowl on my face.  Dan Patrick was doing an interview on Up Close the other week, and when Gary Miller asked him if he had a favorite baseball team, he said no, he only had favorite players.  It's funny, because I had never really thought about that way before, but that's the same way I feel.  It's been about 7 years since I've had a favorite team.  Isn't that sad.  Now I know there are some people out there who are loyal team rooters, but outside of Yankee, Red Sox, Cubs, and Cardinals fans, there aren't any.  I like Mark McGwire, so I root for the Cardinals.  I like Ken Griffey Jr., so I root for the Mariners, but since they could be traded at any time or become free agents, I don't fall in love with the team.  What happened to the Florida Marlins a couple of years ago is a perfect example.  Buying a World Series champ one year is not a good idea to win fans.  The last several World Series champs have been bought.  A team maybe has five home grown players on its roster now.  That's not a team.  That's how loyalty grows.  When the roster of players is the same for over 5 years, fans grow a loyalty to them and that's why they root for team's.  If I hear one more guy (Kevin Brown, Albert Belle, Mo Vaughn etc.) say that them leaving wasn't about the money I think I'll kill them.  How can you say that and then go to the highest bidder?  The players don't even care about their teammates anymore.  If somebody makes an error in the field, does a pitcher say that's okay, no, he's pissed off because he might get the loss and miss out on his million dollar bonus as a free agent.  It's ridiculous.  I love baseball.  That's the only reason I still watch it.  I love the game.  It doesn't matter who's playing to me.  Pro athletes are big damn babies.  The basketball players actually held a charity game for them during the strike because as Patrick Ewing said, "they have families to think about."  Are they serious?  The entire NBA has become a one-on-one isolation game to see who can get the most sportscenter highlights.  When college basketball teams lose, they cry.  When pro basketball team's lose they still made $8 million.  But hey, they do have families to feed.

    One of the things that helps in college sports, is you fall in love with every player on your team.  Even if he is the most arrogant SOB in the world if he's on your team, you love him.  If the same guy is on a team you hate, there's no one you hate more.  Rivalries in college are so much more spirited than in the pros.  In college you hate the other team and everything about them.  In the pros, how can you hate everybody on the opposing team if there's a good chance you'll be playing for them the next year.  Just when you hate a player, he comes to your team as a free agent, then what do you do?  In college you don't have to worry about it.  You just hate everything to do with that team.  So, if you're an Alabama fan, I know how you feel about Auburn.  If you're a Michigan fan, I know how you feel about Ohio St.  If you're a Duke fan, I know how you feel about North Carolina.  For I am a Nole and I know how I feel about the Gators.  It's a hate that you don't feel in pro sports.  It's still a team game.  So, when you are sitting there next week, instead of watching the NBA playoffs which if either the Knicks or Blazers are in the Finals will be a battle of convicts, turn on the College Baseball World Series and remember what it was like when sports were great.