Spring has sprung, and that means baseball fever has hit New Paltz. Students around campus are showing off their pride by wearing shirts, caps, jerseys and anything else that may have their teams colors and logo on it.
Already two weeks into baseball season, New Paltz students are still riding high on the thrill of a fresh start. Yankee fans around campus said they are confident, while Mets’ fans still believe and everyone is getting in each other’s faces about which team is better.
All winter long, fans waited to see what kind of moves their teams would make and tried to get a feel for how well their team may perform. Third-year psychology major Josh Weiss from Brooklyn, N.Y., said that although his Mets did not acquire many big names, he is happy with some of the players that they dropped, such as second baseman Luis Castillo.
Weiss said he is hoping for the best this season, but expecting the worst. He believes the Mets have the talent to make the playoffs this year even though many do not expect them to even have a winning record.
Both Weiss and his roommate, Justin Goodman, a third-year psychology major from Long Beach, N.Y., are very excited about the new season. Weiss sees it as a distraction from homework, while Goodman is looking forward to enjoying games in the summer heat with a hot dog and a cold beer.
Goodman, a Yankee fan, expects the Bombers to be competitive all year and compete for their 28th World Series. When asked if he is optimistic, he responded, “More than a Red Sox fan should be right now.”
Another Yankee fan, Jason Zanfordino, a third-year psychology major from Nanuet, N.Y., could not be more excited for the brand new season. He believes the Yankees are “out for blood” this year after falling short last season. Baseball is special to him because it has always been a way for him to connect with his family and friends. The Yankees have always been a big part of his life, and he says their winning culture has always brought him happiness throughout the spring, summer and fall.
I myself am a huge Yankee and baseball fan. This is the time of year where I lose focus on homework to check my fantasy team, flick through the channels to see which games are on and get the sudden urge to go outside and throw a ball around. The first few weeks always remind me of that first game I went to when I was just a kid and just the overall feeling of excitement I get when I see the Yankees win. I am one of those rare cases where my brother and I are Yankee fans, but my father is a lifelong Met fan. Many Yankee and Met fans hate the other New York team, but in my situation, it is tough to have any hatred toward the Mets. I may poke fun at them from time to time, but I have plenty of respect for the Mets and their fans.
Once the summer begins, baseball will be the only major sport being played in America. According to some, no one needs to force New Paltz students to watch baseball. The real question is: how excited will everyone be if football season begins?