Have I mentioned I love baseball season?
I have, on several hundred occasions debated the idea that this is hands-down the best ‘season’ of all. Encompassing good weather (let’s just ignore the few 100 plus degree days that get sprinkled in every now and again), a great ballpark and a town that seems to cherish all 81 home games is simply as good as it gets.
For me anyway.
Sure, I have friends that live for NFL Sundays and friends that follow their alma mater from the beginning of basketball season when pre-conference tilts are played on islands I couldn’t point to 
on a map all the way until April. I even have a friend or two that watches the MLS and feels the need to tell me about it.
My vote is for baseball season. Any night of the week, any time of day, any month of the year.
That being said, last night’s game was no more intriguing than the new release section at Blockbuster. A blowout, uninspired crap-fest where Tim Lincecum mowed us down like…uh well, an obscure southpaw that throws nothing better than an 85 mph heater, was hardly anything to write home about.
Yet I’m still hard-pressed to think of a better way to spend the night.
For those of us that eat, drink and sleep with the Cards constantly on our mind throughout the day, I know you agree.
The way I see it, there’s four levels of ‘day at Busch’ game attendance preparation, celebration and enjoyment. Each has its own perks and during the course of a six month season, each is certainly utilized on more than one occasion.
And they can be ranked as follows:
Level 1-‘A’ game: Similar to the Cardinal’s ticketing strategy of including a ‘premium’ rate to the game, these are the dates circled on the calendar well ahead of time. This obviously includes Opening Day (capitalized because I believe it’s worthy of holiday stature), a 
Saturday night game that coincides with a friend coming to town and of course any game played in October. These games are undeniably big. You know exactly what will be worn, where you will be sitting and who you’ll be attending the game with. You hate to admit this, but you’ll probably even bring a camera to the game and partake in a handful of the traditional ‘here we are again at Busch’ poses. You might even post them on Facebook the very next day.
B Game: Games which you’ve decided to seek out tickets for anywhere from 24-72 hours in advance. Maybe you’ve conducted meteorological research in the days leading up to this event, perhaps you’ve already decided to take a personal day the next day from work or better yet, you realized the Cards probable starting pitcher that night is someone other than Wellemeyer. Win or lose, this game rarely disappoints because, after all, you designed it.
C Game: I put most day games in this category. This includes the Sunday afternoon invite that arrives just hours before first pitch and the weekday matinee with coworkers or friends that have mailed it in with their job. Also in this subset are the nights at Busch when members of your group are likely to peel off to either beat traffic, attend family functions or to tend to various pets that need caring. While not ideal this duty is mandatory 3-4 
times each season. This is why I don’t own a dog…or children
D Game: Last night is a perfect example, of course. I had intended on my Monday night being nothing more than a quiet night at home highlighted by an uninspiring frozen dinner and two hours of Cardinals viewing before inevitably turning to YouTube to fill the night. Instead, I was offered a perfect capper to a dull Monday, a night at Busch. Three friends, great weather and enough stories to share from the previous weekend to serve as distraction from the shellacking being handed down by the Giants or the fact that Chris Duncan was still somehow in the starting lineup.
Oddly enough, of the 20 or so games I’m lucky enough to attend each season these are some of the nights that stand out the most.
Especially when spent with those of us that always remember any night at the ballpark is one well spent.
And as of today, we still have 40 more of these nights to enjoy.