The Oakland Athletics (Yoga Edition)

I know what you are thinking Reader. You are saying to yourself, ” Isn’t this a blog about yoga and balance?” Well, it is about yoga and balance, but this Scrappy Yogi also happens to be a huge Oakland A’s fan. And this week opened baseball season, so naturally I have to post about it: in my own Scrappy Yogi way.

In yoga, my instructors always talk about how your practice is a journey. Each day your practice can and will be different. You will be able to do handstand one day, but completely fall the next day. As I was practicing yoga on Saturday, I was not able to get into Crow Pose, a pose I have been able to do for a while now. I reflected on the journey my instructors talk about, and then I thought about my Oakland A’s.

A little background if you do not know about the Oakland A’s. They are the small market baseball team in the Bay Area. According to SportTrac, The 2016 Oakland A’s have $76, 278,732 to spend on players this year. Now, compare that to the San Francisco Giants amount of $170,414, 943 and you will see the problem. You can also read Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis for more historical context. 

I’m a believer in trying to have fun in life. I hope most people are. Oakland A’s games are so much fun for me. I love going to The Coliseum, and being part of the game. And as an Oakland A’s fan, you are definitely part of the game. Whether it’s witnessing Reddick being Spider-Man, to booing the rival pitcher to throw off their concentration, or Ron Washington throwing foul balls into the stands, you are part of it. And every fan is different. Here is a list of my fandom rituals:

1. Must attend Fanfest
2. All non-work attire is some sort of A’s T-Shirt/Sweatshirt
3. ESPN app is always notifying me with team updates
4. Must watch the movie Moneyball before season starts
5. Social media logos are Oakland A’s logos
6. Watch or attend as many games as humanly possible
7. Re-tweet @Athletics or players tweets

When I sat in reflection, I started to understand why I am such a big fan of the Oakland A’s. Every season is a new journey. We start in April ready to play, along the way, there will always be bumps in the road. In yoga, some weeks are better than others. Players get hurt, some days you get on base, hit home runs, and your defense is stellar. Sometimes, you fall over in yoga class. It’s a journey, so enjoy it.

~Namaste

Scrappy Yogi