HOLIDAYS, BASEBALL & LIFE IN NUMBERS

Source: The New York Daily News

Shoppers are racing for their final buys.  Travelers are rushing to planes, trains and their very own cars to officially "go on break" and visit their friends, families or long away destinations for the holidays.  And Yankee fans everywhere are celebrating their holiday, for which there are 29 between now and the end of January.

Source: The Sports Basket

If your holiday is Christmas here are some statistics about the man of the next several hours, Santa himself.  "The researchers estimated that Santa will therefore have to visit 5,556 homes every second on Christmas Eve to make sure every child gets a gift. With an average of 2.5 children per household, Santa will need to make 640 million stops on Christmas Eve. If he eats milk and mince pies at each of these addresses, he will consume a total of 150 billion calories in just one night - 60,000 times his daily recommended intake," according to The Daily Mail.

Source: LA Weekly

What about the average Yankee fan?  Well, if you happen to be Italian, you could intake more fish and bread than you could imagine.  However, the average person, according to an article published on ABC.com, "eats more than 7,000 calories on Christmas day, research carried out by Associated British Foods recently found. That's more than three times the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s recommended daily caloric intake."  Why all these numbers?  Well, if we judge someone solely on their numbers on atypical days, then what does this say about us as a society?  Are we numbers-crazy? Is an algorithm for success really providing the entire story?  Should we judge a baseball player solely on his numbers?

My point here is simple.  Data provide us some of the story.  In fact, today, many would say we are data rich but information poor.  We need to make decisions based on more than just numbers.  Just because a player hits 50 home runs in one season doesn't mean he will hit more the next season and just because a player hits 8 home runs in 2016 doesn't mean he will hit close to that in 2017.  And what about that player's other contributions?

Source: USA Today

Just because you spend hours on end with your family during the next week, doesn't guarantee a relationship for life.  Just because you buy your daughter Beats Solo 3 wireless head phones for Christmas doesn't solidify your lifelong friendship of mother-daughter (by the way, thank goodness because I didn't spend $300 bucks on that crap).  And just because you think you bought the best closer in the game, doesn't mean he will save every game, every day and bring you a championship after an 8-plus year drought.

Source: The New York Daily News

Earlier this week I read an article published by the Boston Herald about the strong possibility that the Yankees will play the Red Sox overseas in London in 2018.  I thought to myself, "that's so cool: what better way to promote baseball across the pond than to bring together the game's biggest rivals." But before you get too excited, there's a numbers' glitch.  "The first is that Major League Baseball must determine how it will make up for the gate revenue that will be lost by the teams giving up home games. Also, there is concern that if baseball is introduced to London with such a marquee series as Yankees-Red Sox that there will be a letdown the following year."  And again, we are left with just the numbers dictating the fate of this game ever happening.

I have been preparing Christmas Eve dinner for 24 years as of this evening.  On average I spend between $1000-$1200 on this dinner when you add up the fish, the side dishes, the appetizers, the wine, liquor and dessert.  This doesn't count Christmas gifts, wrapping paper and all of the other logistics encompassed by the holiday festivities.  So, I have probably spent close to $30000 or slightly more on Christmas Eve over the years.  But those numbers say nothing about the priceless memories we have shared over these years; years of laughter, tears, little kids transforming into big kids, glasses of wine tipping over, meaningful presence, friendships, pictures that say more than words.

If you are measure the holidays, baseball and life in solely numbers than none of these would ever provide you the sheer joy of the experience.  The beautifully authentic expression of your 19-year-old son when we sees the family Christmas tree glistening with lights and ornaments as he arrives home from college or the first time you put on your Yankee jersey to go to your first spring game after a cold, long winter and that moment in life where you achieved the goal you set for yourself many months ago.

Source: The YES Network

As we enter the official holiday season over the next few weeks, remember to breathe in and breathe out, love your family despite their annoying remarks about your weight or clothes and let yourself experience life and all it has to offer.  

From all of us here at Bleeding Yankee Blue, thanks for reading us and embrace this time, enjoy life and have a nice holiday season.

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof