Baseball on demand…sort of

By Devon Jeffreys

Last Wednesday, the New York Mets, my favorite baseball team since I was just a year old (see the hat), played their first playoff game since 2000. As you can expect I was … not glued to the TV. I was at work.

Now if you know me, you might think I was having heart palpitations because I couldn’t see the game. But actually, I wasn’t worried at all. And that is a testament to the world we live in.

I had my computer with me at work and despite a wireless signal that faded in and out, could follow part of the game that way.

I also had my cellular phone and its wireless Internet access that allowed me to follow every pitch.

What a difference six years makes. In October of 2000 I was a freshman in high school. At 14 years old, my only job was babysitting my 9-year- old niece and 7-year-old nephew.

My computer had a dial-up Internet connection and took a week to get online. My cell phone was a basic analog model and the idea of getting on the Internet on it was absurd.

I didn’t have to worry though, because my life was easier, somehow the second month of high school and the third year of college just aren’t the same. I didn’t miss a minute of a game (although I may have missed a little school).

So on Wednesday I sat at work and pondered how I was going to swing this one. No pun intended. I took the most logical route first and turned the work radio to ESPN radio, no such luck.

“In the next hour we’ll have an interview with Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio,” the announcer said.

Needless to say that wasn’t exactly what I was looking for. I returned to my computer, fading wireless and all, and purchased a $10 package that would get me the radio broadcasts for the rest of the postseason. One problem — my computer didn’t have the plug-ins.

I resolved myself to following the games and not hearing or seeing them. I got through the first inning on MLB Game Day Live and then the Internet disappeared. I followed the rest of the game on my phone, cringing when the Dodgers scored and leaping (literally) when the Mets did.

I got home for the last two innings, in time to see Billy Wagner strike out Nomar Garciaparra to end it. And I was happy.

My phone bill might be big from staying online for nearly three hours, but the Mets won and pretty much anything is worth it for a win in the playoffs.