Back to Reality

Written by Worm on October 13, 2005

Well folks, it finally happened. Baseball 2005 officially ended Monday evening. Now it’s time to face up to reality, and figure out what to do with those extra three hours a day for the next six months.

Of course, for us here at Rotogods, there is no offseason. We will be continuously updating our MLB Player Updates board to alert you, the reader, to important news and good values for next year’s draft. And when that just isn’t enough, we will always have daily content on the front page, articles to tickle your sense of humor and shine a light on the rest of the sporting world. For those of you who actually follow or play other roto sports, there will be our usual vaultful of canny analysis and player reporting.

But this hardly covers a full three hours a day. Maybe a half hour or so, (except on TiVo article days, when the full three hours may actually be covered.) And looking in the newspaper for any baseball transactions isn’t gonna do you diddly for a couple of months at least. So, now what?

Go Out
Now is the time to make up for the other six months of the year when you’re glued to your TV set every evening. There’s no reason not to be getting out at least two or three times a week. Remember all those friends you used to see last March? Give 'em a call, go out and get some drinks, tell 'em you want to go somewhere where you can watch “the game”. The nighttime starts early during the offseason, so why not make the most of it?

Play Scrabble
This should fill out three hours, easy. If this ever gets boring, (sacrilege, I know,) try out some “phonetic” Scrabble. That’s always a good way to go. Tell your opponent that it’s a silent “Q”.

Volunteer In Your Community
Ha! Just kidding!

Take Up Curling
If you live anywhere in the United States where water freezes during the winter, or anywhere in Canada, there should be a curling rink somewhere near you. Hey, it’s an exciting game, you don’t have to be in shape, you use special equipment (and brooms!), and, of course, drinking is just part of the game. What’s not to love? And, it’s the only version of shuffleboard that you can win an Olympic medal playing.

Watch Other Sports
This is prime time to catch up on all the other sporting activities that get blacked out of your summer schedule. There’s still plenty of NASCAR, golf, figure skating, billiards and poker, so set yourself up with some ESPN and start veging. Don’t forget to set your alarm for April.

Read A Book
Miss that brain-working effect that ends when you’ve finished reading our daily content? Just remember that you have a bookshelf somewhere in your place, where you keep stuff that used to do the same thing to your brain. Personally, I have a couple of these waiting for me by my bedside: The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty, by Buster Olney, and The Third Policeman, by Flann O’Brien. That should keep me for about six months.

If All Else Fails
Maybe it’s late February, your curling club has shut down for the season, you’ve already seen this Spelling Bee on ESPN, you’ve lost the “Q” in your Scrabble set, you’ve spent all your going-out money, and you’ve read every book in the library. Um, now what? Well, don’t forget, we Rotogods are always hangin’ out, just about 24-7, on our Message Boards. Oh, yeah! Don’t get one of our myriad inside jokes? Sign up and ask us about it. Don’t worry, we’ll make fun of you.

So you see, life as we know it isn’t really over. Hang tight, I know it’s a long offseason. Use this time to make yourself a better fan, and a better roto player, you won’t regret it. And remember, it’s never too early to start preparing for the baseball draft.

-- Written by Worm on October 13, 2005