Throughout the long and glorious history of America’s national pastime, an undeniable relationship seems to have formed between baseball and American political culture. From the president throwing the first pitch on opening day to presidential mascots competing in races at Washington National’s games, the political and sporting traditions of our nation seem to come together in baseball.
The very origins of the sport are integrally connected to American politics. Although variations of baseball were played as early as the 1820s, the sport spread nationally when Union soldiers brought their version of the game across the country during the Civil War.
Given this unique, if not peculiar relationship, it is perhaps not surprising that this year’s crop of playoff teams are strangely similar to many of the 2016 presidential candidates. Indeed, many of the storylines surrounding the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates vying for their respective party’s nomination echo the rise and fall of baseball’s elite teams.
This year’s American League Championship Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals bears striking similarities to the Democratic presidential primaries. On the one hand there's Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), the socialist from up north whose cash reserves have catapulted him to the forefront of American politics, much as the Blue Jays' trade deadline acquisitions transformed an average club into a powerhouse in the American League.
D's reconsidering the game plan ?
New cartoon @politico
Full toon here-->> http://t.co/M0eycsKqKA pic.twitter.com/dcA2aAoPqr
— Matt Wuerker (@wuerker) August 25, 2015
On the other hand, there's former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is hell-bent on winning her party’s nomination through whatever means necessary after losing the 2008 Democratic presidential primary race. Similarly, the Kansas City Royals are determined to make it back to the World Series through whatever means necessary — bunts, sacrifice flies, the long ball, you name it — after losing last year’s seven game series in a devastating home loss to the San Francisco Giants.
Unfortunately for Sanders, the Blue Jays playoff fate also mirrors his standing in the polls. Despite the Blue Jays cash reserves and bold emergence in the regular season, they currently trail the Royals 3-2 in the ALCS, just as Sanders appears unlikely to surpass Clinton nationally anytime soon.
The Republican presidential primary candidates also bear unusual resemblances to this year’s playoff teams. In the National League, the New York Mets was a mediocre team at the midpoint of the season that was not supposed to make the playoffs, let alone play in the NLCS; yet the Mets not only passed the Nationals in the NL East, but currently lead the Chicago Cubs 8-3 and will advance to the World Series. Similarly, businessman and former reality TV host Donald Trump has toyed with the idea of running for president for years, but even six months ago many political pundits would not have taken the idea of a Trump candidacy seriously. Yet, here we are in October, with Trump still leading the Republican national polls.
The rise and fall of the Chicago Cubs in many ways mirrors the ascent of Florida Senator Marco Rubio (R) on the national stage. Under the guidance of Theo Epstein and Joe Maddon, the Cubs were supposed to emerge as a force to be reckoned with in coming years. But the Cubs became far better much faster than analysts expected, and have made it is as far as the NLCS. But just like Rubio, it appears the Cubs are not quite ready to win it all (perhaps next time).
Then, there are the losers. In particular, two of the wealthiest teams in baseball, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers, collapsed in the postseason, just as the campaigns of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker have crumbled.
The Yankees, a perennial contender and repeat World Champion, once again made the playoffs this year, just as Bush followed in the footsteps of his brother and father in seeking the Republican nomination (both won their party’s nomination twice, and share three presidencies between them).
But despite its enormous payroll, this year’s Yankees team simply lacked the quality and depth to succeed in the playoffs, and bowed out in the Wild Card Round. While Bush entered this year’s race as the supposed frontrunner of the Republican field, his fundraising prowess has not translated into success on the campaign trail, and he is rapidly falling in the polls.
Although Walker in no way resembles the flamboyance or swagger of a team like the Los Angeles Dodgers, he certainly enjoyed a financial advantage over his peers, just like the Dodgers dominate the MLB payroll (The Dodgers payroll is larger than the Cubs and Mets combined.)
The Dodgers were a supposed lock for the National League Championship Series, just as Walker was assured a spot as one of the Republican party’s top five candidates. Unfortunately, Walker has been forced to suspend his campaign despite his massive super-PAC funding, and the Dodgers are sitting at home watching the NLCS from afar.
Then there are the minor leaguers: Lincoln Chafee, Martin O’Malley, Rand Paul, Chris Christie, Mike Huckabee, etc. Just like minor league teams, these candidates do not merit or receive much media coverage. I won’t break the trend.
Of course, this analogy cannot be applied perfectly to the current field of candidates. GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson’s emergence as a force in the Republican Party is somewhat bizarre given his lack of a concrete platform. Like a team making it to the playoffs without being able to hit a baseball, Carson’s meteoric rise is seemingly improbable, yet he is one of the party’s top three candidates.
With these exceptions aside, there is still an uncanny resemblance between this year’s presidential candidates and playoff teams. My money’s on the Royals to win it all, but only time will tell if the analogy holds true.
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Reach the columnist at clmurph5@asu.edu or follow @ConnorLMurphy on Twitter.
Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.
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