Well, let me tell you, this whole thing about shoes, it’s a mess! Back in my day, we just had shoes. Now they got shoes for this, shoes for that. My grandson, bless his heart, he plays all them sports. Football, baseball, you name it. He’s always needing new shoes. Costs a fortune, I tell ya!
So, he comes up to me the other day, asking, “Can you wear football cleats for baseball?” I said, “Boy, shoes are shoes!” But he goes on and on about how they’re different. Different how, I don’t know. They all got them pointy things on the bottom, right? Those things that dig into the dirt. Spikes, he calls ’em. Or cleats. Whatever.
He says football cleats are heavier. Says they gotta be tough, ’cause them football boys, they run into each other like a bunch of bulls. Big and heavy. They need that protection. Baseball cleats for football, I don’t know, maybe not a good idea. You can get all messed up. Feet is important!
And baseball, he says, that’s more about running fast, like a rabbit. So the shoes are lighter. Makes sense, I guess. Don’t want to be carrying around bricks on your feet when you’re trying to steal a base. Whatever that means.
- Football cleats: heavy, like bricks!
- Baseball cleats: light, like feathers!
- Maybe different, can trip, I guess.
He showed me his football cleats. They do look kinda different. Big and clunky. And them spikes, they’re all rubber or some hard plastic stuff. He says they don’t use metal in football. Don’t want nobody getting hurt, I suppose. That is good, right?
Then he shows me his baseball cleats. They look a little more pointy, like. And some of ’em got metal spikes. Shiny things. He says they help him grip the ground better when he’s running. I don’t know about all that. Seems like you could hurt yourself with those metal things. But what do I know? I’m just an old lady. No metal on football cleats though, that’s what the boy said.
So, can you use football cleats for baseball? He says probably not. Says it’s not safe. Says you can trip and fall, twist your ankle, all sorts of bad things. They are different, the boy says. And the baseball field, it’s different than the football field. Different dirt, different grass. Something like that.
He’s got all these rules in them sports. Gotta wear this, gotta wear that. It’s all very confusing. In my day, we just played. Didn’t matter what you wore. Just get a good grip, I guess that is all.
But these days, they got rules about everything. Even the shoes. So if you’re gonna play baseball, I guess you better get yourself some baseball shoes. And if you’re gonna play football, you better get some football shoes. Don’t be wearing the wrong shoes, might get yourself hurt. That’s what he says, anyway.
He says there’s these other shoes too, for soccer. That’s another one of them games he plays. Soccer cleats for baseball, he says maybe. But not great. He says they’re better than football cleats for baseball. But still not as good as baseball cleats. It’s all so complicated! He says soccer cleats are light.
- Soccer cleats: also light!
- Soccer cleats for baseball: better than football cleats, but still not good.
- Just get baseball cleats!
I tell ya, kids these days. They got it easy. All these fancy shoes. Back in my time, we had one pair for everything. And it was falling apart more often than not. And we walked uphill both ways to school! In the snow! You young’uns don’t know how good you got it.
So, there you have it. Football cleats for baseball? Probably a bad idea. Just get the right shoes, I guess. That’s what the boy says, and he’s the one playing all them games. He should know. It is for safety and for how you play the game, he says. Listen to the kids, they know these things. Just get the right shoe for the right game, I guess that is the best thing. Save you from getting hurt. He says wearing wrong cleats can cause injuries, so just get the right ones. That is the best thing, probably.
And don’t go running around barefoot, neither! You’ll step on a rock or something. Ouch! Kids these days, always need to be told what to do. But that’s okay. That’s what us old folks are here for. To tell ’em what’s what. Now get off my lawn! I mean, field!
