Staying Positive

The poorest way to face life is to face it with a sneer

Welcome to Warning Track Power, a weekly newsletter of baseball stories and analysis grounded in front office and scouting experiences and the personalities encountered along the way.

Baseball is a game of failure.

Failure has a negative connotation in our society, and generally leaves no room for nuance. Perhaps now more than ever, the stigma attached to failure can feel indelible.

But from failure comes growth. Out of failure springs opportunity.

Kirk Gibson was 1-for-9 with seven Ks against Goose Gossage in his career before he touched up the future Hall of Fame pitcher for a World Series-clinching three-run homer in 1984. Failures gives rise to career-defining moments.

When I began this column, I aspired to shine a light on stories of hope and positivity. It’s easy to criticize players, managers, and team executives. (I’ve done it here before.) They are the men in the arena. They put it on the line every day.

It’s especially easy to become negative around baseball. Fred Uhlman, Jr., who has been the Assistant GM of the Padres for 26 years, used to call watching a game with Kevin Towers “nine innings of negativity.”

When I think of all the games I watched over the years with Fred and KT, my memories do not reflect negativity. Often, there were stories shared of adventures on the road, scouting reports debated, roster decisions contemplated, and even a few division clinchers celebrated.

In August, I wrote about Franz Nicolay, novelist and member of The Hold Steady. The very first track of the band’s first studio album is called “Positive Jam.” The lyrics are rather somber, but the song itself is upbeat and, musically, it feels triumphant.

The band’s fourth album is entitled “Stay Positive.”

The title track includes the line:

It’s one thing to start it with a positive jam / And it’s another thing to see it all through / And we couldn’t have even done this if it wasn’t for you.

That’s where I find myself now.

I journeyed to this space motivated by a New Year’s challenge issued by a friend (thank you, Ryan Berman). I focused on one word at a time, one week at a time. Like a batter in the lineup, I wanted only to keep the line moving.

What I found was that this weekly practice created a community united by a love of baseball. Old friends, former teammates, and new acquaintances behind previously unfamiliar email addresses have come along for the ride. For that I am grateful.

This WTP universe is a construct of our own. It became a beacon of promise for me during the endless days of social distancing, exasperated parenting, and a detached existence of video conferences.

Together, we created a place to celebrate the game and its individuals. One of the highlights of my year has been sending this newsletter into the digital abyss and hearing the echoes from you.

Thank you all for supporting Warning Track Power, whether you subscribed 10 months ago or just this week. You’ll be hearing from me at least once more before the conclusion of the World Series, and we’ll keep this thing rolling throughout the offseason. Feel free to add your World Series predictions in the comments below.

As the first baseball season for this newsletter comes to a close — one more time: Thank you.

Mean Mug

Earlier in the week, the original WTP coffee mugs arrived, and — surprise, surprise — I hadn’t considered that centering the logo was not ideal for the layout.

Thanks to everyone who entered the contest on Instagram, and congratulations to Tyler Nelson whose name was randomly selected. He wins this instant collector’s item!

You can follow WTP on Instagram @warningtrackpwr.

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