Campaign tip for McCain, Obama: Throw baseballs

By Marc Kovac

COLUMBUS — The presidential candidates would be wise to take a few cues from Timo Perez.

For those of you who, like me, are not tuned into the sports world, he’s a baseball player — a right-fielder, No. 6 on the Toledo Mud Hens.

I don’t think I would recognize Perez if I passed him on the street. My only interaction with the man came during warm-ups at a minor league baseball game in Columbus last week.

I was standing near the right field fence with two of my three young’uns, watching the players get ready for the night’s game.

Perez (or someone wearing his uniform, since I didn’t get a chance to verify if it was really him) saw me and my kids and threw the next ball that came his way in our direction.

Prized possession

Getting a beat-up practice ball isn’t that big a deal in the greater scheme of things. But for my two boys, it was among the greatest of earthly gifts ever bestowed; they spent the evening taking turns holding it and placed it on their bedroom bookshelf when we arrived home.

And the rest of the game? Though Perez was on the visiting (and, thus enemy) team, we cheered for him when he had a hit or snagged a fly ball.

We’re Timo Perez fans from here on out, all because he (or someone wearing his uniform) took a few moments to acknowledge us and toss us a dirty baseball.

This came to mind while listening to coverage of Barack Obama’s stop in Zanesville this month. The reporter said the presumptive Democratic candidate for president was broadening the usual Ohio campaign trail from the three C’s (Columbus, Cleveland and Cambridge... er, Cincinnati) and heading toward some of the smaller towns where, apparently, there are people who vote.

Battleground Ohio

He’ll need to win the support of folks living in such places if he wants to take battleground Ohio.

Granted, there are solid political lines already drawn in the sand. There are true blue (and red) Democrats and Republicans (respectively) who are going to stand by their parties, regardless of the candidate.

But there are increasing numbers of others who don’t claim a party affiliation and are more open to campaign influence.

I’d bet a few in-person visits to Ohio’s townships and villages would sway more than a few voters. And I’m not talking about these so-called town hall meetings, where invited guests ask pre-prepared questions about health care, education and Iraq.

I mean good, old-fashioned, door-to-door, look-you-in-the-eye handshaking — a simple acknowledgment that small-town Ohioans exist and their votes count for something.

Or, if they’re too busy for such minutia, Obama and John McCain could simply send a few look-alikes out into the byways to throw baseballs to kids standing along fence lines.

X Marc Kovac is The Vindicator’s correspondent in Columbus.