“When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the moon, he and all the space scientists were puzzled by an unidentifiable white object. I knew immediately what it was. That was a home run ball hit off me in 1933 by Jimmie Foxx.”

-Lefty Gomez
Today in 1969, Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. I remember, this was a BIG DEAL when I was 4 years old, and is still a big thing today, considering that our country doesn’t seem to care about the space program. (President Obama’s huge cuts to NASA, and encouraging the private sector to take it over is just one example- Gee I miss the Space Shuttle already).

What made this country great was it’s constant urge to surge into the unexplored. Lewis & Clark’s expedition to the Pacific Ocean forged the path for West Coast settlement. Jeb Smith marked trails through the Rocky Mountains, and the Sierra Nevadas that became interstate highways decades later.

The moon landings in the 60′s were supposed to be an extension of this mentality to explore boldly for all mankind. In grade school, I was taught that we would have bases on the moon by now, and taking trips to the moon would be as commonplace as flying from Los Angeles to New York. It seems like that goal has been flushed away.

So today, I propose that every home run hit in a Major League game be dedicated to that first moon landing. If you catch one of the moonshots from today’s games, put it on ebay, and send the funds to NASA.