THE SCENE

High Fly

Major League Baseball should embrace cannabis.

TEXT DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

The people who run Major League Baseball do not like baseball. Find me a fan who disagrees with that statement. The people who run baseball want it to be the NBA or some type of arena sport (and I say that as someone who loves the fl ow and beauty and raw power of the NBA; it’s just a diff erent game). They want to end games in a hurry with the gimmick of putting a runner on second base in extra innings. They want to upend the strategy of the game by keeping pitchers who are getting lit up on the mound. These are old guys who think they know what the kids want. These are marketers who are neglecting the very essence of what makes their product so damn good.

Baseball is a long, slow, then suddenly thrilling, intensely complicated love aff air. It’s lyric poetry. It’s action movies before CGI (Think: Raiders of the Lost Arc or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid). It’s an old-time game that persists in a world of stats and deep analysis. It endures. But don’t think it’s boring or out of synch with the digital age. It is international and inclusive; the biggest sensation in the game is Japanese, and most clubhouses chatter as much in Spanish as English. It’s a game that can be broken down by new geeky analytics like barrel rate and xFIP (expected fi elding independent pitching). At the same time, it gives the fi nger to stats over the short term—while we can place a percentage on every outcome, we can’t predict what will happen in any one at bat. There’s always the chance a light-hitting utility infi elder can go deep against a Cy Young winner. Baseball is full of passion and the dreams and bat fl ips of a new generation of players making it where giants once tread. But the people who run baseball want to change the game in ways that break its natural fl ow because they think baseball needs to appeal to low attention spans. I say, expand our attention. Embrace what’s beautiful about the game. Give the fans weed.

Baseball could use responsible cannabis. And after the rant above, I hope you believe that when I say that, I do it as a fan of the game. Getting high might actually help some fans slow down, see more, relax into simple rhythms punctuated by intense surges of emotion. And it might bring the newcomers that those baseball-hating bigwigs so desperately want in the seats. One of the reasons responsible cannabis use is so popular is that it gives us the chance to slow down, to take the edge off . As does baseball: sit down in that seat, feel the breeze of a summer evening, fi nd the rhythms, observe the subtleties of how fi elders position according to a hitter’s tendencies or how a runner digs in a heel before stealing a base. Relax. And it’s a little easier to ease into this vibe with a 5mg gummy.

I’m not saying the players should be stoned. Though as legalization continues to sweep the US, many of them are seeking relief in CBD and THC from the aches and injuries of a 162-game season in a sport that requires tricky bursts of athleticism. For all my griping about the people who run the sport, since 2020, Major League Baseball has allowed players

to use cannabis as long as they are not under the infl uence during a game (and they cannot be sponsored by or endorse cannabis brands). Furthermore, cannabis is no longer listed as a banned substance by MLB, where it used to be considered in the same category as opioids and cocaine. Many baseball players are addicted to dangerous painkillers (including Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs who died of an overdose of drugs including oxycodone), and the league realized that legal cannabis could be a safe option for those seeking relief.

So why not let the fans enjoy it? Consuming cannabis during games would only add to spectators’ enjoyment of the sport—and it’s not as if baseball has shied away from alcohol. It’s a fi ne thing to enjoy a cold beer in the cheap seats, so why not a gummy? The teams would profi t on the concession (and lord knows owners who seem more interested in money than winning—think the Colorado Rockies—would like that). It would bring in new fans and maybe enhance their ability to sit and enjoy the game. Sure, the stoner stigma stands in the way of mainstream appreciation of cannabis, and this is supposed to be a family game—but stoned spectators don’t usually shout obscenities and spill beer on your kid.

No matter if you agree with me on controlled, responsible, legal cannabis at baseball games or not, I do hope you go to the ballpark this year and think about it. Enjoy the passing moment of a lazy fl y ball, the joy of the hero-shot home run, and learn a new stat. Think about how baseball can become a game that continues into the future, without changing what’s great about the game.

One of the reasons responsible cannabis use is so popular is that it gives us the chance to slow down, to take the edge off. As does baseball.

The Mother of All Cannabinoids

What is CBG and why is it unique? The team at RopanNa Wellness explains.

You may have recently heard talk about CBG hemp products. Maybe this is entirely new information for you. Either way, you should know more about the mother of all cannabinoids. CBG is a minor cannabinoid found in hemp, meaning it’s found in the plant at low concentrations. When most people think of hemp and cannabis, they focus on CBD and THC. But that leaves a whole host of other compounds out of the conversation, many of them cannabinoids. There are 120-plus cannabinoids found in cannabis/hemp, but we can only measure a few of these today.

The minor cannabinoids becoming more available on the hemp market are CBG, CBN, CBC, and THCV, which is still very rare. These cannabinoids all have unique and profound effects on our physiology which can ultimately help us improve our wellness. CBG is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid and will not cause any high or intoxicating effects. However, in one study, CBG was found to be a potential neuroprotectant which means that it could preserve neurons and resist oxidative stress.

CBG is nicknamed the “mother of all cannabinoids” because all other cannabinoids were once CBG before being converted into their own unique chemicals. Without CBG, there is no THC, CBD, or any cannabinoids at all. There are enzymatic pathways in the plant that convert CBG into CBD or THC and so forth. You can think of CBG as that additional source of balance and relief when your typical CBD intake is not cutting it.

A recent patent application by GW Pharmaceuticals shines a light on the many possible therapeutic uses of CBG. Its list of areas in which CBG can help is impressive, including various pain-related issues, depression, movement disorders, autoimmune diseases, cancer, and a whole spectrum of other problems.

The reality of CBG—and all cannabinoids—is that there is a great need for more research to be done to unlock all of its secrets. There’s a fantastic opportunity for discovery, innovation, and healing in the hemp space. That’s why the team at RopaNa Wellness stays at the forefront of cannabinoid research to develop new formulations while staying grounded in the ancient wisdom from the plant itself.

RopaNa Wellness

Holistic CBD Company Based ropanawellness.com