The Great American Past Time

Thursday morning we had a ton to do in English class. We had a homework assignment to go over, the epilogue of Night to read, a project to introduce, and more. But we set all that aside because we had something much more important to discuss: tagging up on a pop fly.

Half an hour earlier, the need for such a conversation became painfully obvious. At our school, we start each day with a forty-five-minute Advisory time which we usually dedicate to a wide variety of Christian-living or pseudo-academic topics. But two or three times a month, we teachers set up sports competitions between Advisory groups play such sports as dodge ball, basketball or –in the case of Thursday morning- kickball.

I have found that in Asia, the kids tend to take whatever pursuit they are engaged in pretty seriously. So while it was “just kickball,” everyone was pretty intense (then again, maybe it was just me who was taking it a little too seriously).

So, fresh from the kickball tournament, I decided that we could –that we should- steal fifteen minutes from first-period English to review some of the finer points of the Great American Past Time. After all, we are an American school.

Okay look gang. First of all let’s talk about tagging up on a fly ball. If it’s a pop up or a line drive . . . what? A pop-up, Natalie, you know, a kick or hit that doesn’t hit the ground. Please don’t interrupt. Okay, if you are on base and the batter –sorry, kicker- hits a fly ball, you have to wait and see whether the fielder catches the ball. If she does, you have to “tag up” on your base before proceeding. I moved the color-coded magnets around the whiteboard. Multiple times this morning, many of you were caught off base and fell victim to this rule. People, you've got to tag up on a fly ball.

Second, some of you don’t seem to know the difference between a forced out and a non-forced out. If you are in the field, and there's a runner on first, then you have a potential forced out at both first and second. If you get the ball, you have the option of either tagging the runner and or simply tagging the bag before the runner gets there. On the other hand –hey Ivan, pay attention, this is important stuff. On the other hand, if there's a runner on second only, there is no forced out at third because the runner doesn’t have to proceed. If you get the ball, you can not simply tag third base. You're going to have to tag the runner directly. Yes, Sarah, I see you there, just relax. We’re going to grade the homework in just a minute. Okay where was I? Oh yeah, just remember, if you do have runners at both first and second, then you do have a forced out option at all three bases.

Even as I am hearing myself explain all this, I realize how complicated it can be. For those of us who grew up playing baseball (and its illegitimate stepchild: kickball), these arcane rules tend to be second nature.

Julie and I originally signed up for a two-year stint in China, but I’m afraid that we may have to extend our stay. I have so much work to do here. I am determined not leave Hong Kong until all of my students know enough to tag up on a pop fly.

It’s going to take some time.

-Jack

Hey boys and girls, now that we’ve gone over the basics, let’s talk about the much-misunderstood Infield Fly Rule . . .

Closing thought: Why is it called a “past time” as in The Great American Past Time? Wouldn’t it make more sense if it were called a “pass time” as in it something we do to pass the time? Just a thought.