Baseball and Music

There have been two things I've loved greatly in my lifetime: sports and music. I enjoy both, feel very passionately about both, and both have helped me get through some rough shit in my life. Until now, I've never really thought about some connections between two of my loves, until now. With baseball season in full swing and pennant races about to heat up, it dawned on me that there are some connections with some baseball players and teams and musical artists and groups. Some of these may not make sense to you, but that's OK. I don't make sense half the time anyway. Here we go:

L.A. Dodgers- N.W.A./Red Hot Chili Peppers

Photo credit: Sons of Steve Garvey

Now, you may be thinking what do the Dodgers have in common with N.W.A. and the Red Hot Chili Peppers? Like both N.W.A. and RHCP, the Dodgers are a SoCal institution revered by many. Like N.W.A. and RHCP, they're one of the most iconic franchises not just in their sport, but in all of sports, much like both N.W.A. and RHCP are two of the most iconic music groups of all time, regardless of genre. N.W.A. was once considered "The World's Most Dangerous Group," and now, the Dodgers have some of the major leagues' most dangerous bats: Beast Mode, Dre, HanRam, and now the Flyin' Hawaiian, and like RHCP, they have their own unique style when it comes to winning, much like RHCP has their own unique style of music.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim/California/Anaheim Angels- Slaughterhouse 

The LA Angels of Anaheim are an All-Star cast consisting of Albert Pujols, Mike Trout, Mark Trumbo, Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson, and Zack Greinke. In a similar style, Slaughterhouse is an all-star group consisting of some of the most prominent rappers in the game: Crooked I, Joe Budden, Royce da 5'9", and Joell Ortiz. Slaughterhouse had been around for a couple of years when Eminem decided to sign them to his Shady label. Playing somewhat of the Eminem role in the case of the Angels is GM Jerry DiPoto, who signed Pujols, Wilson, and Greinke. Like Slaughterhouse, there were some doubts about the Angels, but both look impressive with what we've seen so far.

New York Yankees- Jay-Z

Who better to compare the New York Yankees to than one of their most famous fans, Jay-Z? Like Hov, they have that certain swagger and air about them. Also, no matter what, one thing is guaranteed: they do get a lot of attention. Also, both seem to attract celebrities, as many celebs are seen at Yankee games, and Jay has been photographed at events with other celebrities. Like Jay, everyone seems to have an opinion of the Yankees. For many hip hop fans, Jay seems to be either the best to ever do it or is wildly overrated. There is no in-between when it comes to opinions of Jay, and the same can be said about the Yankees. 

Boston Red Sox- Metallica

I know what you're thinking: Alex, I've been reading this whole article and none of these make no fuckin' sense whatsoever! Let me explain this one. Metallica has long been regarded as one of the great metal groups of all time, and the Boston Red Sox are one of the most iconic teams in baseball history, but that's not where I make the comparison. When the Red Sox went on their curse-breaking run in '04, they were cheered as the lovable underdogs who came back to beat the Evil Empire. After that, however, once the wins started piling up more and more, and another World Series title followed, the "Red Sox Nation" and the Red Sox as a team became even more hated by fans outside of Boston. Metallica gained a reputation among metal fans in the '80s, but after the Black Album came out in 1991 and became a huge commercial success, in the following years, there was a backlash and feeling among a segment of metal fans that they had sold out. In other words, success made both of them more hated. 

Tim Lincecum- Snoop Dogg

Besides the fact they both love the sticky green, there are other similarities between these two. Between 2008 and 2010, it was hard to find a better all-around pitcher than Tim Lincecum. From 1993-95, there wasn't a bigger rapper in the game than Snoop. After that, however, in both cases, their performance took a step back. After winning back to back Cy Youngs in 2008 and 2009 and a World Series title in 2010, his performance seems to have dropped off, with a slight drop in 2011, and a much more noticeable drop this season so far. Snoop Dogg was on top of the hip hop world with Doggystyle in 1993-94. However, after that, his albums were never quite able to match the impact or greatness of Doggystyle. Then there's the weed. I don't need to explain.

Bryce Harper- Justin Bieber

Both Bryce and Justin have been hyped, and attained quite a bit of success, at relatively young ages. Bryce has a rep for being a bit cocky, and Justin Bieber seems to be gaining a similar rep in some media reports. Like Justin in the celebrity news, the baseball news and baseball media seems to be all over Bryce, a prime example being his "That's a clown question, bro" moment. Also, I can't escape either of them, though I much prefer Bryce to Justin, and find Bryce less annoying.