History was made Wednesday night, when Yankee slugger Aaron Judge hit his 61st home run.
How do I know history was made? Because Major League Baseball has devoted much of the season to reminding us that history was about to be made. It’s been everywhere – all over MLB.com, discussed by the MLB Network talking heads, thrown up and down, left and right by the myriad broadcast booths. History will be made! History should be made! The history that is destined to be made will be amazing history, because, eh, it’s historic.
The words themselves (“history” and “historic”) have served as masks for the reality that – by allowing rampant steroid and human growth hormone usage throughout the 1990s and early 2000s – Major League Baseball ruined and disgraced its own record book, and Judge’s shot merely (yawn) tied the American League home run mark.
And, if there’s one thing we’ve learned from former President Donald Trump, repeating a line pays dividends. The words somehow embed themselves into our psyches until – after enough exposure – we consider the thought both original and irrefutable.
