Dark Bilious Vapors

I'm not only a non-athlete, but for the majority of my life I've been a militant non-athlete. I don't think I've been obnoxious about it, but anyone who suggests that I'm somehow abnormal or perverted because of my distaste for athletics will probably get an earfull from me. Not that I consider my non-athleticism superior to enjoyment of participatory athletics; it's just a matter of taste on my part. And if I choose to die early but relaxed, that's my decision, OK?

Because of my militant non-athleticism, I have a tendency to be cynical about the supposed "character building" aspect of competitive athletics (idle observation of a lot of pro and college athletes tends to reinforce that cynicism, alas). Even my cynicism is put to the test, sometimes, though.

A couple evenings ago I blogged about Scott Rolen's being taken out of the game when he was hit in the head by a pitch in the first inning. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to follow that story as closely as I'd like to (been a busy week at work), so I missed this story which I caught up with courtesy of Redbird Nation:

Well, ya got trouble, my friend, right here in Three River City. It all started in the first inning of last night's game, when struggling Bucs righthander Ryan Vogelsong drilled Scotty Rolen with a fastball to the batting helmet. Rolen, who was later diagnosed with a mild concussion, ran the bases but had to be pulled from the game before assuming his position in the field.

Rolen was shaken up, for sure, but he was thankful the beaning wasn't worse. "It could have hit me right in the face," he said.

Vogelsong, for his part, asked Rolen if he was okay after the incident, then checked again by calling Rolen in the Cardinals clubhouse, apologizing, and expressing his concern. Said Rolen,

"I tell you what, I'm a Vogelsong fan now. He came out of the game and called over to the clubhouse and asked if I was all right and apologized. That's first-class right there. That's very professional. Very, very classy."

Len on 06.03.04 @ 06:37 PM CST