Book Review- I Don't Care If We Never Get Back

Even the most hardcore of baseball fans probably wouldn’t want to see 30 games in 30 days, especially when cross-country car travel is required, but it was a dream for Ben Blatt.  Not so much for his friend Eric Brewster, who doesn’t even like the sport.  Eric went along to see the country, but winds up seeing mostly ballparks and interstate highways.  

I Don’t Care If We Never Get Back is the chronicle of the daunting trip.  It’s not really geared towards baseball fans, or packed with information about the different ballparks.  It’s more about the journey of two friends and a tale of logistics.  Ben is a statistics freak, and he designed an algorithm to identify the most efficient route to accomplish the 30-in-30 feat.  There is much attention paid to how much driving the two would need to do to make it to the different ballparks, and how Ben went from a baseball fan during the trip to rooting for short games so the travel would be easier.

It’s a fast read, but ultimately kind of repetitive, as the friends strive to make it to each ballpark on time (Ben doesn’t consider it a complete game unless they’re there from first pitch to last).  There are some notable moments, though.  Ben gets to meet his idol (not a player, but Cubs President Theo Epstein, in a meeting that doesn’t go as planned), family is visited, and complications arise throughout the trip.

 

One of the great things about watching baseball (for baseball fans, at least) is that memorable or odd things can happen at any game.  The odds may be small, but in any game, a pitcher can throw a no-hitter, a player could hit four home runs, or the game could end dramatically on a hit or home run in the bottom of the ninth.  Here are just a few of my memorable moments:

 

·         September 9, 1988 was my first Brewer game, and Gary Sheffield hit his first home run in the major leagues, a game winner against Seattle.  Sheffield would go on to hit over 500 home runs.

·         I watched the Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim play a game at Miller Park.  There was a huge snowstorm hitting Ohio and Major League Baseball moved the Cleveland/LA series to Miller Park.  Tickets were heavily discounted, and we sat right along the first base line for $10.  This would be the first time I’d see CC Sabathia.

·         My dad and I were at one of Sabathia’s first home starts.  Sabathia was a huge acquisition for the Brewers,and he didn’t disappoint, throwing a complete game and hitting a home run.

I think everyone has a little Ben and Eric in them when going to a game.  Not every game is going to feature the spectacular plays, and some pitchers work very deliberately, so it’s very easy to get fidgety.  For a lot of people, it’s a three-hour opportunity to visit and chat, with the game taking a back seat to good conversation, brats and beer.