Earlier this season, when the Rangers signed Matt Treanor, someone linked to this great story at Baseball Musings.
It was a perfect day for a game, sunny, but not too hot. At some point in the game, a pitch got by Treanor, and with no one on base, he ran to the wall where we were sitting to collect the ball. After picking it up, he looked at us and said, "Isn't it a great day for a ballgame?" then headed back to home plate.
Sometimes I wonder why someone would stick around in the minor at age 28, but it's obvious from that exchange that Matt just loves playing the game. It's nice he finally made it to the majors.
That story alone endeared me to Treanor a bit.
I was more endeared when I was sitting in the left field bleachers of Safeco Field and Treanor was looking up at a few of us Rangers fans and bantering away and smiling. The Lone Star Ball squad that went to Oakland to watch the Rangers clinch also say he was a really cool guy. Treanor just seems like a cool person who's stuck around because he loves baseball.
And sticking around baseball hasn't been that easy. He didn't get called up until he was 28. He's played 360 Major League games to his 921 in the minors. Hell, his wife is more famous than he is and I'm not positive beach volleyball is a more popular sport than baseball. (No offense, Misty. I care every four years, really.)
But Treanor has stuck with the minors for years because baseball is the life he likes. Late in the offseason, he became a part of the little band of baseball players, and actually contributed a bit of help. His Baseball-Reference page will finally, now and forever, have a Postseason Batting section. Tonight, he will most likely be catching because the combination of he and C.J. Wilson seems to work. And that means after 16 years of puttering around in baseball with only limited time in The Show, Matt Treanor will finally play in his first World Series game, something I'm willing to bet he's always dreamed of and probably doubted at times he'd ever reach.
I'm happy Matt Treanor has been a part of the 2010 Texas Rangers, and I'll be happy for his first World Series game. Hopefully he does something for the storybook.