Dugout Issues

I have been watching baseball on TV, or in person, and playing it, for over sixty eight years and I just can't get used to the home team having their dugout on the first base side of the field. I know this is stupid of me and that there are far more important things for me to be ranting about, but it is just one of those things that bugs the crap out of me.

I grew up a Cubs fan, for those of you new to this blog, and they were housed on the third base side, and still are, so that is what I got used to. Even when we played pick up games, or in little league, the home team was always on the third base side. This was what I/we considered normal.

Here is a picture of the LA Dodgers dugout which is on the third base side. I'm not sure why nobody wants to be anywhere near a future Hall of Famer, Clayton Kershaw, but whatever. Third base side dugouts just look right.

Here is a picture of the Boston Red Sox first base side dugout where they couldn't fit a bag of balls in there it is so old and crowded, but it doesn't look all that much different from the third base side ones.

Thinking that my memory told me that all dugouts were on the third base side when I first started getting into baseball, I went and looked up what the breakdown was in 1960, about the time I discovered my love for the game, when there were only sixteen teams. I was shocked at what I found.

Back in the day there were five teams with their dugouts on the third base side at home. The Cubs, Cleveland, LA Dodgers, SF Giants, and the Milwaukee Braves. The White Sox, Detroit, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Boston, NY Yankees, Cincinnati, Kansas City Athletics, and Washington Senators, all were first base placed.

Today the ratio is just as big with eleven teams on the third base side and nineteen over by first. I'm sure for those fans it looks normal for them to see their guys on the right.

I get why teams do it. It is easier to get back to the dugout from first base. Frankly, no matter what side your dugout is when you are out on the field there will always be three position players that will have a longer run than the other six.

I have been watching a lot of Padres games since we moved here, and I've become a fan, so I am sort of used to seeing them peel off after a ground out and head right into their dugout but when I actually think about it, it looks weird.

Like I said, there are far more important issue for me to be bothered by, but this has been in my craw all season. Thanks for letting me talk it out.