By David Dolan
Ah, baseball, America’s pastime. The 21st century has just been an extension of the home run explosion that we saw in the 1990s. For all the problems I highlighted in an article last year, it remains a great sport, regardless. For most of us, it was the first sport we played as kids. So if one sport’s going to stick with you throughout sports fandom, it only makes sense that it’s baseball. Let’s dive into the best of the 21st century so far on the diamond.
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