For decades schools have wrestled with whether to start before or after Labor Day. Some poor fools start the week before only to get the following Monday off and disrupt the flow of information that some teachers have been able to establish. In other parts of the country, school begins in early to mid-August-which really stinks.
All I know is that Labor Day was the final official holiday during the baseball season and my last chance to catch a weekday game for the year. And no team in their right mind would schedule an evening game on that first Monday of September.
While we might have family obligations later in the afternoon, Dad and I almost always attended a Cubs game-even though they were rarely in it at that point. In Chicago there was always the possibility that it would be a warm day. Flash forward to my years in Philly where it was always hot and steamy. The Vet was a horrible place to watch a game, made worse by the lousy seating. I think one or two years, I conned friends into joining me on LD. I know one time a friend, Dennis joined me, but he was a local so he didn’t have to find his way back to campus.
It’s hard for young fans to imagine going to games without a car or uber to rescue you from the dreaded Holiday Train schedule. My freshman year I hadn’t quite figured out SEPTA and its myriad lines. By the time the Orioles came to town for the World Series, I had mastered the late-night schedule.
Shucks, one year I think I saw the Mets play the Phillies to escape the unbearable heat in my dorm. That’s like willingly attending a 2024 White Sox game (of which I have attended 3 this year).
In the Midwest LD marks the unofficial end for most public swimming pools. I understand the need to take that last dip before the season ends. Finding that last neighborhood BBQ is equally important. In the past decade, I’ve attended a number of ML and minor league games on LD-believing that the season isn’t ending.
When I saw that there are only 11 games today, I was upset because it means that 8 teams are not playing on LD. It’s not like these guys work long shifts without breaks. Even the great Pat Hughes hasn’t labored to inform fans of the rough ten-games in ten-day stretch the Cubs are in the middle of (because they aren’t and because they’ve won 6 in a row). Nobody needs a day off today. The rosters have expanded (by only 2) but because very few players (more on that in a moment) have played all of their team’s games to this point.
It’s bad enough that the MWL no longer plays on Mondays as a part of their 6-game series. Minor league teams used to make LD afternoon games special as they completely understood that this was the end of the line for most of their fans and summer employees (lots of teachers work as ushers in minor league baseball).
Willy Adames has started all 137 games at shortstop for the Brewers this season. At 138 games, Bobby Witt Jr. is one of the few to join him. They don’t need no stinking rest.
While I won’t be at a game today, I will be enjoying my last hours of freedom.
