ROYALS

Matt said today that this run by the Royals is one of the best sports experiences he has had. I concur. After all we have been through.

What a ride. The only thing that could possibly compare for me was the 1995 Huskers National Championship capped with the decimation of #2 Florida in the Fiesta Bowl by a score of 62-24...and it wasn't that close.

We endured Tony and his Nosotros Creamos, but Latin pride could only go so far. We endured a couple of decades without a decent second baseman, and depended on a journeyman Chinese pitcher from Panama who was probably eligible to be the fifth starter on most staffs. Our season tickets were in the days of 95-100 losses each season, but even then it was a good day at the park.

Dayton Moore looks like a genius now with the Zach Greinke trade that brought Cain and Escobar. The acquisition of Cueto is golden, despite most of us crossing our fingers to see which one of him would show up.

We can almost forgive Jose Guillen. I said "almost." We can overlook some of Ned's bizarre moves when we look at what I consider to be the pivotal play of the entire playoffs--the hit and run with Morales in the Astros game after the pop up dropped in the short outfield. (Nobody talks about that, so don't worry if you don't remember).

Hosmer's sprint to home will be the play that is replayed. It was so typical of the team and what was so fun to watch. Aggressive, gutsy and in Hosmer's own words as he took the first three steps, "This might not be a good idea." But they were prepared for just such a play by the coaches who said, "Make Duda and d'Arnaud throw." It's hard to win a World Series when you haven't thrown out a runner since September 8.

Right now, I miss baseball. I miss getting up in the morning and checking the box score. It is now on the computer, but it is like I used to do in the Kansas City Star. And before that, in the Sioux City Journal. For years, driving through South Dakota of a summer evening, coming home after some event or sales call, listening to Denny Matthews and Fred White on KSCJ. Yep, it goes back a ways.

Matt also said that the Iowa football season is just "icing on the cake." I wouldn't go that far, but let him revel in a good run by his alma mater as Nebraska sloshes around in the bottom world.

Baseball encourages hope. Every team is going to win it all when they are in Arizona. Baseball embraces nostalgia, too, and we will remember this time. This warm, colorful autumn of 2015.