I Think I Have a Crush on Baseball

"What if I told you I like you?" It's a question that's really about taking a chance. Admitting that something, or someone, has quietly become important to you.

That’s how I started feeling about baseball. Not because I fell in love with baseball overnight, but because I left Rogers Centre feeling like I'd stumbled into something I didn't know I'd been missing.

Finding Summer in the City

There's something about summer in Toronto that makes you want to say yes to things. A patio you've never been to. A neighbourhood you've never wandered. A baseball game you've never really thought much about.

Sometimes a city feels completely different when you stop trying to see it and start experiencing it. That day wasn't just about going to the Rogers Centre.

It was walking through the sea of blue jerseys, hearing the buzz outside the stadium, grabbing snacks, looking around at tens of thousands of people who had all chosen to spend their evening in the exact same place.

Maybe it's the history nerd in me, but for a second, it gave me Roman Colosseum vibes. Obviously, no gladiators… just baseball. But there was something about thousands of people gathering in one place to cheer, gasp, celebrate, and experience the same thing together.

It made me think about how, even after all these centuries, some things about being human haven't really changed. We still gather. We still choose sides. We still get completely invested in what happens next.

More than a Baseball Game

I'll be honest, I always thought baseball was cool, but at the end of the day... it was just guys in tight pants hitting a ball.

Then I actually sat through a game, and I realized that was only part of it.

The funny thing is, baseball wasn't completely new to me. I have memories of playing it back in elementary school, and I remember actually liking it.

Despite being Canadian, I've been a Yankees fan for most of my life. Sorry, Toronto, it took me a while. But Blue Jays, you've officially won me over too. The Yankees will always have a place in my heart, but I have to rep the home team.

What surprised me wasn't just the game itself. It was everything happening around it.

The families who have probably been coming here every summer for years. Friends who know exactly when to cheer. The little kid a few rows over who celebrated every hit like it was the greatest thing he'd ever seen.

Somewhere between the seventh-inning stretch, everyone singing along, and hearing an entire stadium erupt after a big play, it clicked.

People don't just love baseball because of baseball. They love what it gives them.

A reason to gather. A tradition to pass down. A few hours where the outside world gets a little quieter, and everyone is invested in the same story unfolding right in front of them.

It Woke Up a Side of Me I Didn't Know Was There

The biggest surprise wasn't that I enjoyed the game. It was that it made me curious.

I wanted to understand why everyone got excited over certain plays. I found myself asking questions instead of just watching. I wanted to know the little things that lifelong fans already knew.

It reminded me that there are still parts of myself I haven't met yet. Sometimes all it takes is saying yes to one new experience for something unexpected to click.

Maybe that's one of the best parts of growing up… you don't stop discovering who you are.

Maybe That's the Crush

So... do I suddenly know everything about baseball? Definitely not.

But maybe that's not the point.

Maybe my crush isn't just on baseball. Maybe it's on summer in the city. On saying yes to something new. On finding joy in places I never thought to look. On realizing that there are still new sides of me waiting to be discovered.

Or maybe...

I really do have a crush on baseball after all. ||