Ode to the Double-Header

Let’s talk about double-headers. And I’m not talking about the cheap day/night kind. I mean the traditional, single-admission variety. Double-headers are like Geo Metros. You still see them every once in a great while, but you know they’re only there out of necessity. Nobody rides around in one for the nostalgia – it’s because they’ve got somewhere to be, and no better means to get there. So too, with baseball teams. Single-admission double headers are a way to escape a scheduling jam. Such is the case with the Orioles’ upcoming double-header against the Pirates, scheduled for 4:05 on May 1, 2014 (assuming, of course, that an old guy doesn’t float by in an ark).

If you can get out of work a little early, I highly encourage you to take in both games at Camden Yards. A single-admission double-header is one of the best sport experiences a person can have. One of the beautiful things about baseball is that, regardless of the outcome, you almost always get the chance to see your team play again 24 hours later. With the single-admission double-header, it’s instant gratification. You get the chance to wash yourself clean of a terrible loss right away. Or you can ride the emotional high of a win into the next ballgame. No waiting, just baseball.

And in a way, not just baseball. A lot of times, baseball is just what’s going on in the background when you’re with people.

The last double-header I attended was with Scott, my dad, and the guy I’m named after – a motley crew, if ever one existed. We spent the first four or five innings of Game 1 at Demspey’s before making our way to our seats, where we stayed through the last out of Game 2. I would never stand for that at a single ballgame, but knowing I wasn’t going to be cheated of my opportunity to see a game, we stayed to do it right (we’re gentlemen who take a bar seriously). We cheered our faces off, we got on MASN… I don’t remember the score of either game – or whether we won or lost. It was a great experience. A seven-hour marathon of good times with good people, watching a game I love.

Of course, I also attended a single-admission double-header in 2007, in which Dave Trembley’s Orioles lost both games (30-3, 9-7) in embarrassing fashion. Regardless, that double-header provided its own set of memories. I look back on that time fondly, as  I shared it with my wife and our five-week old daughter – a reminder of the times we could stroll to the ballpark from our house in Pigtown. Having watched the beating in person also gives me that “I was there when” story. And who doesn’t love that?

The double-header rose to prominence in the early 20th century, as a tool for baseball to boost ticket sales. With the economic need gone, and increasing demand for player safety, they’re a real rarity. When it comes to baseball, I’m a hopeless romantic. For me (and I suspect a few of you in Birdland) “let’s play two” is music to my ears. It’s a chance to bask in the beauty in one of those idiosyncrasies that make this game special. Don’t miss this chance… when was the last time you saw a Geo Metro?

Photo Credit for featured image: Todd Olszewski / Baltimore Orioles