Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants and their fans on taking game 1 of what is sure to be a very exciting 2010 Fall Classic. Any series without the Yankees is fun as it’s always more fun to root for teams than to root against them. Giant’s fans will tell you how likeable this year’s team is with “aw shux” Buster Posey and the machine beard gimp guy, etc. But the most likeable person in all of baseball is Rangers manager Ron Washington. I’ll go as far to say that it’s un-American to not root for the Texas Rangers this year. Why? One word: Bubbles.
Have you ever watched the best television show in the history of modern entertainment? It’s called The Wire. Bubbles is the resident crack head of the show. The beauty of Bubbles though is that he’s not your run of the mill crack head. He’s the smartest guy in every room he’s in. He parlays his persistent position on the streets of Baltimore into a role as the precinct’s go-to informer. Bubbles understands that his characterization as a crack head makes people underestimate him, which in turn allows him access that is extremely useful for the city’s detectives.
But what’s most admirable about Bubbles is the fact that he wants more. Some of the most compelling episodes of the show are when Bubbles tucks his shirt in, brushes his hair and tries to do better. That’s inherently American: the path from nothing to something; from the crack den to the board room.
This brings us to Ron Washington. You know the uncle that everyone has? The one that your parents never went into too much detail on, but he was always around on holidays? When you got the nerves to ask your dad about him, the answer was usually short and simple:
“Son. Unc lived hard.”
There was never more commentary than that. It was a life that wasn’t meant for kids’ ears. Your youthful imagination pictured a guy living like Michael Irvin but without the Super Bowl rings.
Ron Washington is your crack head uncle. He’s Bubbles with his shirt tucked in. When you watch Ron Washington in press conferences you can’t always put your finger on what makes him so compelling, but you think to yourself, “Unc lived hard.” What Ron Washington is in the process of doing is undeniably American: from the crack house to the World Series. It’s the story our kids need to hear. Be an American. Go Rangers.
