Church and Baseball – Top of the First Inning – Protestants at Bat

“Baseball is like church.  Many attend. Few understand.”  Leo Durocher

Do baseball and church have anything in common? Many people point tongue-in-cheek to the first words of the Christian Bible: “In the Big Inning”. I like this possibly photo-shopped rendition of Michaelangelo pitching baseball in the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

 Although Abner Doubleday has been given credit for the origin of baseball, most purists know that baseball’s Genesis came long before Abner’s time. Some date it back to the late 18^th century with references to “town ball” in early American life. Maybe it has lost some of its luster in recent years, but baseball has long been America’s sport. In the movie “Field of Dreams” Terence Mann (played by James Earl Jones) tells Ray Kinsella (Kevin Kostner):

 “The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball.  America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers.  It’s been erased like a blackboard – rebuilt, and erased again.  But baseball has marked the time.  This field, this game, is a part of our past, Ray.  It reminds us of all that once was good, and could be again.”

[Note: In the book Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella from which the movie was taken, Terence Mann was J. D. Salinger, but Salinger was offended by the fictional portrayal of himself in the novel, and his lawyers said that they would be “unhappy if it were transferred to other media,” so the studio created the character of Terence Mann.]

Just as we cannot know with 100% accuracy when baseball arrived, neither can we know exactly when the church came to be. Both teams trace their roots back to the birth of the baby Jesus in Bethlehem some 2000 years ago, but disagreement arises in the definition of the “real” church. Catholics of course claim to have the longer history, but many Protestants refuse to legitimize or even acknowledge the Catholic claim to being the original church.

To the question, “Did Jesus establish a church?” almost all Protestants and Catholics agree that He did. But the next question brings controversy. “If He did, indeed, establish a church, does it exist today and, if so, where is it?” The Catholic squad contends that Jesus established His church through the first Pope, Peter (which will be discussed in the second inning), and can show an unbroken string of games played by Popes throughout the centuries. Protestant players talk trash to the Catholic team by pointing out unethical and even rule-breaking practices by Popes and others in the Catholic organization. Catholics agree that there were bad Popes and bad people doing bad things in the name of the league at times, but respond with similar trash talk like, “So what?” and “At least we were in the game. Where were you?” [Note: A good book on this subject is Pope Fiction by Patrick Madrid.]

A minority of Protestant players like to call John the Baptist the founder of the Protestant league, but referring to this as a stretch is an understatement. That independent minor league team has as its gospel a book called The Trail of Blood written by J.M. Carroll. Its subtitles are Following the Christians Down Through the Centuries and The History of Baptist Churches From the Time of Christ, Their Founder, to the Present Day.  However, the theories presented in that writing were discounted by its own author later in his life – as Yogi might say, “He said that before he died.”

In fact, the Protestant league was founded by Martin Luther in the 16^th century, some 1500 years after the establishment of the Catholic league. Martin Luther actually played second base for the Catholic squad, but he became disgruntled over Catholic league policies and left to form his own league of teams. Today it is estimated that there are over 30,000 Protestant teams, which makes the end-of-season playoff bracket cumbersome at best. The competition between the Catholic and Protestant teams has continued throughout history, but even that rivalry has been overshadowed at times by competition among Protestant teams.

[Note: The modern era Protestant team called The Baptists was named not after John the Baptist but, in fact, after Anabaptists or “Re-Baptizers” who came to be with the formation of the Protestant League. Many on the Catholic team who followed Martin Luther were re-baptized in order to join the Protestant league.]

In the modern era, 1973 was a particularly bad year for Catholics, Protestants and baseball, in general. Two leagues had been formed in baseball – the National League and the American League. Much like Catholics and Protestants, both leagues espoused supremacy. The leagues existed in relative harmony for decades before the 1973 Schism, which came in the form of “The Designated Hitter Rule”. Much like Martin Luther had done, the American League wrote new rules and found a strong following. The Designated Hitter Rule stated that a team could enlist a substitute batter for its traditionally weak-hitting pitcher, essentially adding a player to the long-standing, God-given roster of nine players (divisible by baseball’s Trinitarian number 3). The designated hitter does not play defense; he bats for the pitcher on offense.

Some have asked, quite rightly, why not substitute for a weak-hitting shortstop as well, or why not have an offense and a defense like football? (I’m not sure if anyone else has asked those questions, but I have.) Rick Wise, a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox in 1974 said, "The designated hitter rule is like letting someone else take Wilt Chamberlain's free throws." And of course, everyone knows the quote by Crash Davis (played by Kevin Costner) in the movie “Bull Durham” (1988): “I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf and the designated hitter." (He said some other things during that speech, but none of it is pertinent for purposes of this discussion.)

[Note: In addition to this heinous baseball rule in 1973, “homosexuality” as a mental disorder was removed from The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in direct violation of the Catholic League Rule Book, and the Supreme Court decision Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, incensing many Catholics and Protestants alike.]

[Note 2: AstroTurf was invented in 1965 and originally called “ChemTurf” but was renamed after its first well-publicized use at the Houston Astrodome stadium in 1966. The Astrodome was the world’s first indoor baseball stadium and was nicknamed “The Eighth Wonder of the World”. I first walked into the Astrodome through the east gate in the spring of 1965 as an eleven-year-old boy with my dad and my grandfather. I will never forget that day or the awesome view from centerfield or the majesty of The Eighth Wonder of the World.  I had never seen a baseball field bigger than the Little League field I had played on.  I had been a Yankees fan through their glory days in the early 60s with Mantle, Maris, Berra, Whitey Ford and other greats, but my grandfather was an Astros fan, and I became one that day.  I was a die-hard fan over the years until the Astros fell from grace and became members of the American League with the abhorred “Designated Hitter Rule”. To me, it was like finding out that your wife of 40 years had left you because she had become gay.]

[Note 3: Back to AstroTurf: Tug McGraw, relief pitcher for the New York Mets, when asked if he preferred AstroTurf or grass, responded, “I don’t know. I’ve never smoked any AstroTurf.”  Tug was credited with coining the phrase “Ya Gotta Believe”, which became motivation for the 1973 Mets and their run to the World Series that year. They were managed by one of my heroes, Yogi Berra, and were defeated by the Oakland Athletics in the Series, but only in a decisive 7^th game.]

[Note 4: Tug McGraw was the biological father of famed country music singer Tim McGraw. According to Tug’s book Ya Gotta Believe, Tim was the result of a one-night-stand between Tug and Tim’s mother, Betty. Tim was raised Tim Smith and believed that his stepfather, Horace Smith, was his dad. Tim discovered his birth certificate at the age of eleven and found that his real dad was the baseball player, Tug McGraw. Tug refused to acknowledge his son until Tim was about eighteen, and only then because of the notable family resemblance. In the forward to Tug’s book, Tim wrote, “I was his son, but I never called him Dad.” However, Tim and his wife, Faith Hill, ensured that Tug received the best medical care through his fight with brain cancer, to which he eventually succumbed in 2004 at the age of 59.]

Introduction (Pre-game Warmup)

I have played for both teams.  Well, not really. I have never played for the Catholics professionally, but I have practiced with them on many occasions and have come to respect the members of their organization. I was born and raised on a Protestant team and have remained on the team. I was raised Methodist, but I married a Baptist and have been on that team for over 40 years now. However, I have good friends and family on the Catholic team that have been strong influences in my life, and I have a great deal of admiration for the team.  I have master’s degrees from Houston Baptist University and Augustine Institute, a Catholic seminary in Denver, Colorado. I think I have a knack for seeing the good in both teams, and my desire is that players on both teams be able to see the good in the other team that I see.

I grew up in church and I grew up playing baseball. I have often compared the two.

Annie Savoy, Susan Sarandon's character in the movie “Bull Durham” echoes this sentiment in her own way during the opening voice-over monologue in the movie:

"I believe in the church of baseball. I've tried all the major religions and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic's rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I learned that, I gave Jesus a chance. But it just didn't work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there's no guilt in baseball. And it's never boring. . . . It's a long season and you gotta trust it. I've tried 'em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the church of baseball."

One of my first memories of childhood is watching, through the chain link fence from my back yard, boys playing baseball in a sandlot field.  I was too small to climb the fence.  I don’t know how many times I stood there at the fence and watched them play, but I remember the day that Mike Erlanson (Big Mike) lifted me over the fence and told me that I could play.  My Dad eventually built a set of steps over the fence and I spent almost every non-rainy day playing baseball on that sandlot. 

I am so glad that Nintendos and Play Stations didn’t exist when I was a kid.  I played baseball every day that I could.  When I got a little older, I rode my bicycle to the “real” baseball fields that the city of McGregor, Texas had built, stopping along the way to recruit potential players. As years passed, it became more difficult to find guys to play baseball.  Some got interested in cars; some in girls; but my interest stayed focused.  I played baseball with anyone that would play with me.  Of course, I, too developed interests in girls and cars, but they would never surpass my love for the game.  Baseball was my life.

One can learn a lot about life on a baseball field. I did. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. Charlie Brown said, “It doesn’t matter whether you win or you lose….until you lose.” Sometimes the umpire’s decision doesn’t go your way. He might be wrong and it might not be fair, but his decision is final. (Unless the video replay proves him wrong – something that will be discussed later.) Both institutions – baseball and church – have rule books and interpreters of those rules. In both, the rules have changed to some extent over the years – for better or for worse. Many would advocate more changes, many less, and the debate will continue.

A fierce rivalry has existed between the Protestant and Catholic teams for centuries. Each thinks it has the better program, and the games go on between them. Each believes the other misinterprets the Rule Book. This writing will not settle the multiple issues between the two teams. There will always be a competition and each will play by its own rules to some extent. Facts and opinions will be voiced in this book that might possibly upset many players on both teams.  I have observed that many people become defensive when their interpretation of the Rule Book is questioned or even merely discussed.

I have learned not to take too many things seriously on a baseball field or in church. My goal is to take a sometimes light-hearted and sometimes semi-serious look at both teams – not to divide but to unite – to give each team a little insight into the other. If the Catholics better understood the Protestants and the Protestants better understood the Catholics, the games might be a lot more fun. I think it is possible that the two could unite into one league.

We will play nine innings or longer. There is no time limit. The game could be shortened by inclement weather or some other act of God.

Play ball.