On channel 31 I can watch a baseball player round the bases after hitting a homerun, or a college basketball star cut down the net after winning the national championship. Or I can watch channel 4, where our president is again pretending to know what he’s talking about and a black male is again suspected of committing a crime. Hmm…tough choice.

For decades, sports, whether professional, college, or even high school, have been our shield from the real world. In my life I consider a baseball field my sanctuary. If I’m between the white lines, nothing can go wrong. In other words, the wonderful world of sports has captivated me like nothing else can.

So what’s wrong with that?

So they tell me that professional sports drive kids to do crazy things. These athletes are supposed to be our role models. Newsflash: Kobe Bryant is not the only person to ever commit adultery. He’s not even the first athlete to do it. So he screwed up. But guess what? I’m still going to be in the stands when the Lakers come to town, and you probably won’t be able to find me because it will be a sellout. Guess what else? It’s our fault that he’ll be on the court that night instead of in court.

Then there is the so-called pure world of college sports. It has been said that it is sweeter to win a National Championship than a World Championship. But there are also those who say the road to that goal is too long and very rarely traveled. Supposedly, college athletes don’t get as good an education, and the chances of them actually going pro are slim.

Did it ever occur to those people that these dreams might be the athletes’ driving force?

It is true that college athletes spend a vast majority of their time practicing, or lifting weights, or doing something sports-related. And I bet most of those who criticize that system know that if it wasn’t for sports, many of those kids wouldn’t even be in college.

OK, so blame it on high school sports then. The idea of professional sports is often pumped into kids at a young age. But when high school arrives the entire system jumps to the next level. Practices are every day after school. Last year the Garfield Boys JV basketball team practiced on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Coaches make everything so serious that it becomes more a part of the life of a student than being a student is.

With that philosophy students will never learn what it takes to get into college and succeed. Supposedly.

Recently I have noticed that students try to get into clubs like Jazz Band or Annual or Messenger because the college process is so competitive these days. The more clubs you put on a transcript, the better chance you have of being accepted. That works for sports too. Many high school students see opportunities for college scholarships. Those rich white guys in control of the players are letting those poor black kids go to school for free. Last time I checked, free can’t be beat.

There have been incidents such as the grade changes at Franklin, which have not been proven to be athlete’s grades, nor is that a common problem around the country. Sure it happens, but it happens for other reasons too. Maybe the time should be spent investigating the people that do it, not finding a easy answer for the why question.

Sports are my shield to all of this. It’s amazing that I can watch someone, and, regardless of how much money they make, or exposure they get, know they are giving 100 percent, because at some level they love it. That’s how I want to live my life.

For those of you who disagree with this, you need look no further than yourself. If it wasn’t for fans, there would be no team. And if it there was no team there would be no media coverage. In other words, stop paying their salary. And if we did that, all we would see every night is the aforementioned news. Instead we can use sports as a shield from what we like to call the “real world.” Of course, maybe that means that the world of sports is the real world. Never will we stop attending sporting events, and that means that athletes will continue to get ridiculous contracts. If you were offered $252 million, what would you do?

We live in a world ruled by money, and maybe we should start blaming that. Sports are simply a byproduct of the human need to be happy, to have someone to root for and to look up to. It’s playoff time in Major League Baseball and the passion that is displayed both on the field and in the stands is unparalleled. We love sports and we love heroes. Just because this love is grown at a young age and we incorporate it into our dreams doesn’t mean it’s not real. It could be more real than anything else.

I’m going to keep watching Sportscenter every night because I think it’s okay to dream. And it’s ok to have a dream come true.