World Cup Traveler Assumptions From an MLB Game

The World Cup coming to North America has been a beautiful reminder of some of the good things about this part of the world when we often forget.

Largely, it’s been a mass amount of people from all over the world coming to our land and marveling at our gluttony, such as “Wow! Can you believe the concept of bottomless chips and salsa?” or “Have you seen this gas station that has a million bathroom stalls, brisket, a gift shop, and everything you can possibly imagine? What a marvelous place!”

It’s very sincere. Some of the travelers may also be attending their first Major League Baseball game without any context for the season, the players, or the league’s expectations and culture. That doesn’t mean baseball is a white American sport now, with the beautiful worldwide takeover by some of the brightest stars in the league, but the Major League Baseball experience is incredibly unique.

Let’s make some predictions about possible misconceptions that could occur that you may hear from these people who are innocent, but possibly accurate!

New York Yankees // “Wow! This Ben Rice Guy Is the Best Hitter in Baseball!”

Unfortunately for those travelers, if they were to go to the Yankee Stadium Cathedral in the Bronx, they would see a gift shop full of Aaron Judge jerseys for sale but no Aaron Judge to be seen on the field since he’s been on the IL. It hasn’t mattered at all, because if they’re watching the game, they may just think that Ben Rice is the best player of all time. The first baseman is second in all of baseball in OPS, clubbing homers to the short porch, and powering the Yankees in what was previously an underwhelming Judge season before his injury.

We may all just underrate Rice because the expectation was that the Yankees were going to sign a big name this offseason to contend, and his name is just Ben Rice, but if you went to a Yankee game and were told that there was a three-time MVP on the team, you’d probably guess Ben Rice.

St. Louis Cardinals // “Are These the Rowdiest Fans in All of Sports?”

The self-proclaimed classiest fans in baseball reside in St. Louis, Missouri. It’s a baseball town. They clap for the opposing team respectfully if a milestone is reached. They shake hands with the opponents. They have a rich history of winning and about as much knowledge as anyone regarding their team and the league; they’re traditionally the buttoned-up stalwarts.

That reputation is being entirely contradicted this year in the best way possible. If you’re an international soccer fan accustomed to drinking heavily, singing songs, potentially lighting flares, and having the cultural connection to a club in the most riotous of fashions, you’d want to party with the Cardinals who have let their hair down and have ignited the tarps-off movement where the ballclub that initially had little-to-no expectations this season are waving their shirts above their head in the outfield for every Alec Burleson home run. This is a college baseball team having the time of their lives.

“Clearly, Chicago Is a White Sox Town.”

The Windy City has two teams. One had World Series expectations going into this year, and the other had 121 losses two years ago, with the only highlight they could use on social media being the amazing milkshake they had at the games.

Chicago is normally a Cubs town with the history of Wrigley, the pop culture references, and the overcoming of the massive curse. Still, unless you’re just looking at the ever-present tourists of Wrigleyville, you’d think the White Sox run the city. The North Siders this year are having a blast with every Munetaka Murakami home run, Colson Montgomery is blossoming into one of the most well-rounded hitters in baseball, and Davis Martin is looking like an ace. The vibes of the AL Central-leading Sox couldn’t be more drastic than the Cubs fighting for a Wild Card spot at this point.

“The Milwaukee Brewers Must Be Spending a Fortune on This Team Because They Are a Powerhouse.”

Perhaps the most systematic powerhouse in baseball, year after year, has been the Milwaukee Brewers. You don’t trade with them because they become a superstar afterward. They steal every base. Their relievers are a machine. They make your pitchers have the highest pitch count in baseball to make them work before pouncing on you with aggression. Everyone looks like a star. Given how soccer salaries and transfers work, one might think they’re spending top dollar to look as dominant and physically imposing as they are.

Nope! They’re in the bottom 10 in payroll. Christian Yelich is making the most because he’s the former MVP, statue guy that HAD to be given that extension. Jackson Chourio is the next-highest-paid player, but he was paid because he was 20. They were that confident he was good before playing a single game (so it’ll be a bargain later on), and Jacob Misiorowski? The hardest-throwing starting pitcher in history and the best in the game currently? He’s making less than a million this year.

A factory.

“Are the Nationals the Most Fun Team in Baseball?”

A team that had absolutely no expectations going into this season, losing every year since their miracle 2019 World Series, tanking for prospects, and cleaning house for the 33-year-old puppy manager Blake Butera to take over, was the Washington Nationals. It’s one thing if you’re from another country to go watch a game in the nation’s capital and assume that in that market, they’re an imposing, historical franchise (they’re from 2005!). Still, it’s another to see this Nationals team winning as much as it is.

They’re also winning in the most fun, chaotic way possible that entirely contrasts your 1-1 soccer draw: scoring A LOT and also giving up A LOT! It makes for exciting baseball, even if it may or may not be sustainable. It’s James Wood tank job home runs, Curtis Mead getting on base for CJ Abrams to knock him in, and then also still trotting out starting pitchers with ERAs over 5 to the ball games’ offensive back-and-forths. You can’t blink watching Nationals games. Once they figure this pitching thing out, we’re in trouble!

“Americans Must Eat Hot Dogs Every Day, Huh?”

The American staple is offered in so many different fashions. It is THE iconography of the baseball park- from Chicago style, the Dodger dog, the crab mac & cheese dog, the boomstick two-foot chili dog, the churro dog, to dollar hot dog nights, that there must be the perception that it’s all we ever eat or have the desire to eat.

It’s a beautiful marvel you truly have to experience firsthand.