Although The Sport Sucks Going To Baseball Games Might Be 1.1 Sporting Events To Attend

Jamie Sabau. Getty Images.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, baseball is the worst sport in America. Borderline unwatchable on TV. Golf, yes golf, is more entertaining to watch on television than baseball. The season drags on for what feels like an eternity, there are way too many meaningless games, and the action just doesn’t hit hard enough. Again, this is a personal opinion, and I fully admit I suffer from extreme ADHD, so maybe I’m just not built for the slow burn of baseball. But man, watching nine innings from your couch is like watching paint dry.

That said, baseball in person is a completely different beast. Growing up in South Florida, going to a Marlins game felt more like a chore than an event. It wasn’t fun, it was sad. The team had no juice, the stadium was empty, and unless you were getting paid or dragged there by a relative, you weren’t going. To make things worse, the new ballpark was plopped down in the middle of the ghetto, with nothing to do around it before or after the game. It’s honestly impressive how they managed to take the little magic baseball had and completely eliminate it.

Then I moved to Chicago and everything changed. I’ve done a complete 180 on going to baseball games. In terms of vibes, it’s not just the best sporting experience in the city, it might be the best in the entire country. I’ve been to Death Valley for LSU vs. Florida, and that was the most electric atmosphere I’ve ever felt in my life, but it was also a war zone. The energy was chaotic. Wrigley Field, on the other hand, feels like a dream. A Cubs game in the summer is the definition of chill. You’re sitting in the sun, drink in hand, surrounded by people who aren’t really there to dissect batting averages, they’re just there to have a good time.

And the real magic happens after the final out. The whole city spills out into Wrigleyville with one mission, drink until you forget who even won the game. Every bar is packed, the streets are buzzing, and somehow everyone ends up in a Taco Bell or McDonald’s before the night’s over. Gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

So yeah, the sport itself still sucks, but going to a game in Wrigleyville? That’s heaven.