Last season, I went to a Cincinnati Reds game alone and did the old fashioned score-keeping just for kicks.
No big deal...I go to games a lot. I just don't usually "keep score" because I feel like it would be rude to the person I went with. However, since I was going solo to this game, I figured it would give me something to do, seeing as how there are about 17 minutes of actual action during a 3 hour game.
As the first few innings got under way, it all came back to me (one of my Mom's boyfriends taught me how to keep score as a kids. Here are some examples of typical scorecard symbols: "k" means strikeout, "_" means the player hit a single, "=" means the player hit a double, "bb" means player drew a walk, "6-4-3" means the player hit into a double play in which involved the shortstop, second baseman, and first baseman--in that order)
It was a good game. Bronson Arroyo was in the process of almost throwing a no-hitter, the weather was perfect, and since I only had to buy one ticket, I was residing in much better than usual seats.
But a funny thing happened: as the game progressed everyone around started asking me saw me at the game alone, writing every detail of what was happening in baseball code on an official scorecard, and they started peppering me with questions about strategy and about baseball in general. Holding that score card and mini-pencil made everyone think I was some kind of expert-genius.
"Should Dusty keep Phillips batting 4th?"
"What are they going to do about their lead off hitter?"
"Any idea why they didn't put on the shift for Votto?"
"Who do you think they'll go for at the trade deadline?"
And, though I mostly had no clue, I answered every question they asked in a nonchalant manner--making as many obscure sabermetric references as I could so as to keep up the charade.
Keeping score was a new way to be someone else. Who would've thought?