Dear Major League Baseball,

No matter who is playing, the arrival of the baseball playoff season is an event in my home.  We will watch these games and enjoy the splendor of the sport.  But when one of my son's favorite teams is playing, it's more than an event.  It's a religious experience.  My 13 year old son, JT, is a fan of the Cardinals and the Giants.  His enthusiasm is a family inheritance, a love shared with his grandfather.  The last few years have been very good to us.

There are some challenges in my household when JT's teams are playing.  Team shirts must be washed and ready for the game.  Since his entire non-school wardrobe consists of baseball t-shirts, this is pretty easy to accomplish.  Hot dogs must be served for at least one game.  Again, that's manageable.  What's killing me is the time of the games:  8 pm eastern time.  By the time these games are completed, usually just after 11 pm, I am exhausted.  I awaken the next morning at 5:30 knowing that another 11 pm bedtime is on the horizon.   And then there is the matter of my son staying up that late and then attending school the next day, each day more tired then the previous.

Sure, we could skip a game.  We could go to sleep early and miss the end of the games.  But this is the playoffs and the Cardinals are contenders.  We aren't the sorts of fans who take our duties lightly.  If our team is in the field, we will cheer them on.  My son's world is baseball and I am the sort of mama who wishes to cultivate her child's joy and excite.  So we happily watch.

The World Series starts next Wednesday.  The games are all scheduled to begin at 8 pm, EST.  We will be there in front of our television.  But I wonder how many other kids want to watch games and are saddled with mothers more sensible than I, mothers who make their children get enough rest to be functional in school?  I wonder if you couldn't think about a few games that start at 7 pm EST.  I wonder if you realize that a generation of fans misses out on the some splendid playoff baseball and may never develop a passion for the sport when you show the games after their bedtime?

Respectfully,

(Exhausted) Sassafras Mama