Faith in the World Series...

I’m not what you might call a huge baseball fan, but I have been watching more of this year than ever before. And being from this part of New York, I’m a Yankees fan – a little disgruntled right now, but a Yankees fan none the less.

Now as a Yankee fan, I also route for whatever team Boston plays. The Red Sox are the Yankees arch rivals on the top of the American League East, and it doesn’t matter what time of the year it is, a Boston loss is good news for a Yankees fan.

The dilemma is, who to route for now that the World Series has started, and my beloved Yankees are not playing. History has it that I should route for whatever team the Red Sox is playing, but I had never heard much about the Colorado Rockies – until today! And what I heard has made me a Rockies fan.

Chuck Colson’s Breakpoint Commentary for yesterday, October 24, talks about the Rockies organization:

The Rockies are the first major league sports franchise organized on specifically Christian principles. That does not mean that the Rockies only sign Christian players. General Manager Dan O’Dowd told USA Today that while he knows “some of the guys who are Christians,” he “can’t tell you who is and who isn’t.”

The Rockies’ way means “[doing] the best job [they] can to get [the right] people with the right sense of moral values . . .” To that end, prospective Rockies are interviewed to see if they are compatible with the Rockies’ approach.

Once players join the Rockies, they are put in an environment that reinforces these values: “Quotes from Scripture are posted in the weight room. Chapel service is packed on Sundays. Prayer and fellowship groups each Tuesday are well-attended.”

…With all the news these days about steroids, cheating, and felony arrests, modern-day pro sports needs a story about the good guys. And athletes need the reminder that it is possible to excel both as a player and as a human being—that character counts.

I don’t know about you, but that sounds good to me. I’ll support the Christian organization over a secular organization any day – especially if I don’t have to route for a rival!