Despite being our national pastime, baseball has seen a significant decrease in interest over the past 10 years. As a result, attendance has reached an all time low across Major League Baseball, with minor league baseball also seeing a decrease in attendance. I had the chance to sit down and interview Matt Mancuso, a current freshman at TCNJ who, just like me, is a big baseball fan. Mancuso detailed how his recent experience at a Trenton Thunder game allowed him to watch players develop and cited enjoying some high thrill moments as reasons why baseball games are still worth attending. Additionally, he explained how different ballparks across the country have many attractions that add to the experience of going to games.
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Trip Around the World showcases campus diversity
By Mathias Altman-Kurosaki
Staff Writer
Students visited the Education Building Room 212 to learn that the College has a lot more diversity than meets the eye— the room was full of students studying at the College from across the globe who were all eager to share fun facts and food about their home countries.
Trip Around the World, which due to snow was rescheduled due to Nov. 27 at 8:30 p.m., was originally meant to happen on Nov. 15, during International Education Week, which lasted from Nov. 12 to Nov. 16. IEW is the joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education created to help promote more awareness of global influence, and to attract future students wishing to study abroad in the U.S.
The event also featured an international fashion show, which showcased clothing indigenous to different countries such as Thailand, Japan and Mexico. There were also performances from TCNJ Dragonflies, a Chinese based dance group, and TCNJ Saathiya, an Indian fusion dance team. The event was organized hosted by Residential Education and the Center for Global Engagement. Cosponsors included the Japanese Student Association, the International and Domestic Students Organization, the Spanish Club and more.
While most students involved were natives of the country they were displaying, others were domestic students involved in many of the campus’s cultural clubs who felt a greater interest towards learning about different countries.
“I had a general interest in Japan before joining the JSA, but I became more interested in the country and actually started taking Japanese,” said Pablo Cardenas, a junior history major who has been a part of the JSA since his freshman year.
Much of the international cuisine was both different yet comparable to American food — Australian Tim Tams, which consists of two chocolate covered biscuits with a thin layer of chocolate cream, were similar to other chocolate-covered wafer treats. Even Haribo, a popular German candy company also found in American supermarkets, was on display.
The students representing their native countries were also intrigued by the surrounding cultures.
“I became interested in Japan and India by looking at their posters, and I also learned that it takes 27 years to visit every beach in Australia,” said Viktor Holst, a junior English secondary education dual major from Germany.
Students were also impressed by the presentations and were grateful that the event allowed them to connect with new people from unfamiliar organizations.
“I was originally at the event to just chill, but the performances and fashion show were pretty cool, especially the Chinese costume,” said Rory Webber, a freshman political science major.
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Raw and Unfiltered Sports Takes
Ranking Which Current Division Lead is the Safest
With the Major League Baseball season a little over a month in, experts can start to sense which teams are going to compete this year, and which one’s should maybe start looking towards next season. Right now, four of the six divisions have different leaders than what they finished with last season. Only the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers are currently succeeding in defending last year’s divisional crowns. Over the coming months, we will see which of these surprise teams can hang on to their division lead. Here is how safe each division lead is, in my opinion, on a scale of 1-10 (1 being dangerous, 10 being very safe).
- Los Angeles Dodgers: The Dodgers are playing with a chip on their shoulders, after losing two straight World Series, they are playing determined to prove those wrong and show that they can get over the hump and win a World Series. With very little competition in the NL West, it is extremely unlikely that we will see the Dodgers relinquish their division lead, even if another team in the division gets hot. Security Level: 10
- Houston Astros: The Astros are playing better than what their record shows, as their run differential is currently third best in the AL. Their offense has been strong, averaging 5.1 runs per game (good for third best in the AL), and their pitching staff ranks second in ERA in the AL at 3.73. With the A’s underperforming and the Mariners having come crashing down to earth in the past four weeks, the Astros seem like a very safe bet to win their third straight AL West title. Security Level: 10
- Minnesota Twins: This might surprise some, but the Twins have the best winning percentage in all of baseball at .657. While the Indians have won the AL Central each of the past three seasons, the Twins have been firing on all cylinders, while the Indians have seen their star players struggle and have dealt with injuries. It wouldn’t be too surprising if the Indians overtake the Twins, but the Twins have played like a complete team through the first 35 games of the season and seem poised to win their first division crown since 2010. Security Level: 7
- Chicago Cubs: The Cubs got off to a dreadful start, starting the year 2-7 with dreadful starting pitching. Since then however, the Cubs have gone 19-6, fresh off a sweep of their arch-rival St Louis Cardinals. Kris Bryant has started hit like the all star he has shown he can be, as well as Anthony Rizzo, with Javier Baez and Wilson Contreras also tearing the cover of the ball. Even Jason Heyward has been hitting well, with an OPS almost 200 points higher than his mark since he joined the Cubs. Outside of Yu Darvish, the starting pitching has been excellent, and despite not having a designated closer, their bullpen has been pretty solid as well. The Cardinals and Brewers are definitely going to give the Cubs a run for their money though, so the Cubs can’t be placing their bets on running away with the division. Security Level: 5
- Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies were very aggressive this offseason, and thus far, despite Bryce Harper struggling, the moves seem to be paying off. Their offense has produced 5.22 runs per game, and despite a shaky bullpen, their pitching staff has a 3.93 ERA thus far. However, even though the Braves and Mets have been struggling of late, both teams could be dangerous. As mentioned earlier, the Phillies’ bullpen has struggled, and their defensive flaws have been shown as well, having committed the eighth most errors in the NL. It’s hard to see the Mets’ pitching staff struggling all season long, and the Phillies haven’t exactly gotten the best results from ace Aaron Nola. The Phillies could still win the NL East, but the Mets and Braves are going to be on their heels all season. Security Level: 4
- Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays have been outstanding thus far, boasting a team ERA of 2.87 that is the best in the majors by a country mile at the moment, over a half run better than the second best team (Cincinnati Reds are second at 3.44). The offense has averaged 4.7 runs per game, led by defending AL Rookie of the Month Brandon Lowe, as well as outfielders Tommy Pham and Austin Meadows. The Rays definitely look like a playoff team, but the Yankees have been winning despite having most of their stars on the injured list, and the defending world champion Red Sox have started to heat up, having won 13 of their last 19 games. Even if the Rays continue to do everything right, the two teams right behind them are starting to heat up and will be hard to stop once they are both at full strength. Security Level: 3
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