Bear with me....

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I never thought I would do this, but here it is. I am entering the world of blogging, ever so reluctantly. I am writing from Prague, where I am currently representing the Kaunas Lituanica baseball team in the European Cupwinners' Cup Baseball competition. Basically, it is one of two European Baseball Championships held every summer. I came here with the Lithuanian team, along with two other Americans, on a bus crammed full with 30 people, a twenty-four hour ride from Kaunas, Lithuania, to Prague, Czech Republic.

The story of this Lithuanian team at this tournament is the classic story of David and Goliath. In Lithuania they don't have enough baseballs to have a real practice, they don't even have a field with a fence or a proper baseball diamond, they practice on an old Soviet-area soccer stadium that hasn't been taken care of for twenty years. The right fielder is standing on one of the straight-away of the concrete track that encircles the field. Imagine a parking lot with grass growing up through it, and that is what it is like. If I had photos I would show you. Maybe by the next entry I will have figured that out.

And so the team is here in Prague, playing on a real field, with teams like FC Barcelona (yes, THE FC Barcelona, one of the most famous soccer clubs in the world) and big budgets and stacked rosters. They are really good, and we are, well, not as good. The other six teams are staying in a hotel affiliated with the tournament, and we're staying in a smaller, cheaper place about thirty minutes outside of the city. The other teams came by plane, we came by bus.

But I wouldn't want to be here representing any other team. I have a lot of respect for the guys I'm playing with.

Everyday here I think about the conditions in which the Lithuanian guys have learned baseball: they have no access to equipment, very little money to buy equipment, no baseball fields, not a single game is ever shown on tv, about 90% of the country doesn't know what the game is. It is something akin to the popularity of 'Curling' in the US, but maybe even less popular.

How does one become passionate about a game that holds no cultural capital in the place where you live? I grew up loving baseball, but would I have loved it if my dad and brother hadn't loved it? Would I have chosen to play baseball if all my friends didn't play, if my dad didn't buy me a glove, bat, and ball when I was five? If there was nowhere to go and watch a game, or to see one on tv? I don't know that I would have chosen baseball. And this is what blows my mind about the guys here, about their love of the sport, and their passion and commitment to the game. To me, it makes no sense.

I will end this entry here, because it has gone on too long. This is an experiment in blogging. I plan to keep it simple, to try to create a window into what I'm seeing, and a little bit of what I'm thinking. Next time maybe there'll be pictures. But I hope to do justice the experiences I'm having.

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Comments

[Jim P]

From Iowa
Will, Just finished reading your comments. Please write and send more when you can! Give our best to Sigitas, Nathan and Christian. Best of luck to all of you- this is a tremendous step for Lithuanian baseball and you guys are to be commended on what you are doing. I hope you see it as a favorable experience. Good luck. Jim and Grace

[Ally]

Hi
Hi! It sounds very interesting! Wish you good luck on your match.

[Sail]

emm~come on!!~
well i`m always thinkin about startin my blog,but.....i`m a bit lazy bone....:(

[Moose]

From Tropical Moose, Durham
I think that this is a great way to communicate with people arround the world without filling up people email folders. It gives a quick update on how you are doing. Keep it up. Have agreat time.