A Long Time Ago

When I was a kid, I used to get so excited when baseball would return. I can remember watching the first spring training games of the season, usually it was a Cardinals-Mets game from Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg, Florida on Channel 9 with announcers Ralph Kiner, Bob Murphy and Lindsey Nelson wearing his trademark ugly, multi-color sports coat.
It seemed that the Mets televised more spring games than the Yankees did on Channel 11.
Still, I would watch the games and remember getting upset when the Yankees lost. For games that weren't on TV, and only a handful were, I would race to get the paper the next morning to catch the score. When the Yankees won I was happy, certain that the Yanks were World Series bound. When they lost I was sad. As for the Mets, I was glad when they lost and unhappy when they won.
I still look forward to spring training games. I still get excited when I see that first game on TV and the memories come floating back.
The only thing different is I don't get upset if the Yankees lose and I don't jump for joy when they win. I don't care one bit about the results. Although, I still get a chuckle when the Mets lose, even in the spring.