Scared of the Dodgers
It's okay to admit that you're afraid of something. Sometimes, it's what is necessary to finally overcome that thing. I am afraid of the L.A. Dodgers.
I’m not afraid to admit when I’m afraid. It’s come as a result of one of those generational gender gaps that I always saw and never liked. Men have always been seen as “tough” and “emotionless” in American culture and it created a situation where men were unable to admit when they needed help. Fuck that.
I wear my emotions on my sleeve and am unafraid of the judgements that might come as the result of that. It hasn’t hurt my life in any way, and in many ways it has made it better. If you are a guy, or really anyone who has thought that being emotional is a bad thing, I recommend trying it.
So, here’s me admitting an emotion: I’m afraid of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
They don’t just look like a great team, they look like an all-time great team. The type of team that we’ll still shake our head and think about decades from now. Which, I mean, I get it. They have infinite resources and their only World Series trophy from the last 30 years came from a shortened season that removed the toughest parts of the sport (fans and long seasons).
There are moments where I allow myself to be optimistic and say that the Padres are going to be the giant-killers in the playoffs, downing the Dodgers and scaring the rest of the league, but it doesn’t last long. Because the Padres play the Dodgers tonight, in an important series for playoff and momentum reasons.
Most of the time I sit here, convinced that the Padres are going to get out-classed for three games before stumbling the rest of the way and going into the playoffs on a cold streak instead of the tear they’re currently on.
And that’s okay. Luckily, how I feel about these teams has no effect on the outcome of the game or the series. I’ll still be watching and cheering as if I wasn’t scared at all, hoping that the Padres can live up to my most optimistic dreams over the next few weeks.
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