So I broke my pledge and actually watched Game 4 of the World Series. After all, Roger Clemens was pitching and it was the final start of a spectacular career. Of course the media hype has been intense all season, and particularly during the post-season, but this kind of thing doesn't happen very often. Baseball is also particularly good at creating monumental moments given its deeply historical and nostalgic place in American culture. Thus, the combination of modern media and entrenched feeling made for a "special" moment when Clemens walked off the mound at the end of the seventh inning. He left after striking out his eighth batter of the game (quick: name the Marlin who's claim to fame will most likely be that he was the last batter to strike out against The Rocket) and then the nostalgia kicked in. Tips of the cap all 'round from the Pro Player fans and the Marlins for one of the best power pitchers ever to play baseball, and Fox's Jack Buck was there to remind those of us watching at home just how special this all was. I don't mean to sound totally cynical (I acknowledged, and enjoyed watching everyone acknowledge Clemens), but it's important to remember that we allow ourselves to experience moments like these as "special." We're allowing ourselves to participate in the emotion of celebration for a career well-done. And it's important, no fundamental, that we experience the celebration as a group, with other people, even if we're engaging with those other people through a television screen.

Interestingly, Roger Rosenblatt had an essay on the News Hour tonight that focussed on the idea of fandom. Look for it at Rosenblatt's News Hour page in the next couple of days.

UPDATE (10:34 P.M.): Who doesn't love walk-off home runs! Ahh, just another "moment" I'll treasure for the rest of my life. Or until the beginning of Fox's Fall TV schedule. ;-)