At First Things, David Hart explains why baseball is the Platonic ideal of sports. This, I think, holds true only for pessimists--people who see life as long stretches of boredom punctuated with crashes of failure.
I take issue with two of Hart's claims. First: "So much of what a batter, pitcher, or fielder does is astonishingly improbable, and yet—it turns out—entirely natural." Watch Tim Lincecum unhook his arm from his shoulder every time he pitches, and try explaining the "natural" in that.
Second: "And something similar is true of the juncture of infield and outfield, where metaphysics’ deepest problem—the dialectical opposition but necessary interrelation of the finite and the infinite—is given unsurpassable symbolic embodiment." To which I respond, No, you're talking crazy talk.
But I still admit to being drawn in by Hart's argument. That's the weird thing about baseball. It is not at all exciting to watch, but it's thrilling to read about.
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