Feeling unmoored without sports

My favorite TV series of all time is “The Wire.”

The show is a crime drama on HBO that aired from 2002 to 2008. In the third season, two of the main characters are in an argument and one accuses the other of being “a man without country.” That phrase best sums up how I’ve felt these last few weeks without sports.

Even though the Washington Wizards weren’t having the best season, I took tremendous joy in watching Bradley Beal blossom into one of the best guards in the entire NBA.

I was preparing for the inevitable disappointment that comes with identifying as a Mariners fan.

I’m not a big golf guy, but the Masters would have started this Thursday and I always like to pay attention to any championships.

The list goes on, and any kind of resumption seems far in the future.

It’s discouraging not to be able to watch sports, and it is even more discouraging to not have the ability to cover them — to tell the athletic stories of the Columbia Basin. It feels strange that Moses Lake High School baseball will not be able to defend its state championship, or that Othello senior Patrick Azevedo will not have a chance to add a second state golf title.

The last sporting event I was able to attend this prep season was the 2020 Mat Classic. At the time, I had no idea it would be the last sporting event I would cover until — hopefully — this summer if the Spuds and Riverdogs can get onto the field.

I feel for all the seniors who didn’t receive a chance to compete in a real way this spring. The undying optimism of student-athletes was something that struck me immediately when I took over the sports beat in 2013. I tried to maintain a glass-half-full approach and think that at least there would be some semblance of a season.

However, Gov. Jay Inslee’s announcement on Monday that in-person school would be closed until the end of the academic year effectively ended any chance at having a spring sports season. A crushing blow for all the coaches and athletes who tried to stay ready should school reopen.

In a statement released Monday evening, the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association confirmed the cancellation of spring sports.

Everyone involved has handled this evolving situation with tremendous grace and I can only look forward to the time when I am able to hear the referee’s whistle or the pounding of a ball again.