First Half of 2026...So Far

Greetings, Vocal readers and subscribers! We've reached the end of the first half of the year. 2026 has been an interesting, yet productive one for yours truly. The year might have started rough with winter weather impacting a majority of the country, but we hope to end 2026 on a high note. I'll be highlighting some of the stories I've written on Vocal from the first half of the year. You've probably have read at least one the following entries that will appear on this list. Links to the original stories will be found down below for your viewing pleasure.

The Greatest College Football Game Ever Turned 20

Where were you on the evening of January 4, 2006? If your answer was watching the Rose Bowl between the Texas Longhorns and USC Trojans, you know that it was and still is regarded as the greatest college football game in history. Also, it's the most watched college football game, with 35.6 million viewers, according to Nielsen. The Longhorns won that game 41-38 and Vince Young was named the Rose Bowl's MVP, and it was also the 800th victory in the school's history.

Black History is Part of American History

President Trump and his administration had been purging anything mentioning and disregarding those who have made positive, meaningful impacts in our country, specifically Black figures, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jackie Robinson. Their ongoing fight against what they call the "Woke agenda" was a distraction from important issues impacting Americans. For this story during Black History Month, I highlighted Jackie Robinson, the man behind the creation of the month-long celebration, and three players who played in the Negro Leagues. Finally, I praised Ted Williams for convincing to elect two players into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Black History Month is needed, because the contributions of African American figures cannot be forgotten or erased from American History.

Return to Arlington

After seven years of hard work, I was promoted to full-time status at work a few days after the New Year arrived. The following month, I went on my first vacation in nearly 15 years. That place was Arlington, Texas. That's where I grew up and originally from. I spent a couple of days down there and I was surprised on how things have changed the last time I was home. On the last day of my vacation, I took a premium tour of Globe Life Field, the home of the Texas Rangers, which is my favorite team. It lasted an hour and a half and learned so many things about the team I didn't know before. I saw plenty of artifacts, including from the team's 2023 Postseason and World Series runs. The final half hour we were led to the field and the kids got to play catch. It ended at the team's store, where I bought a couple of things. As for me, I was admiring the field. It was my first time stepping foot on an MLB field, which was on my bucket list. I recently went back home a second time for Memorial Day weekend. It was good to be back home again.

The Baseballism Store

During my trip to Arlington back in February, I visited a place that I always wanted to go and I follow them on social media. That place was called Baseballism. It's a premium store that was founded in 2006 and has 10 locations in seven states. The first Baseballism store, according to the timeline on their website, opened in February 2014 in Cooperstown, New York. For those that don't know, it's the same home as the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Their merchandise was licensed by Major League Baseball in December 2022 and nearly three years later, the premium brand reached 1.5 million followers on their social media pages. The location in Arlington was amazing and bought a shirt and a pair of shorts. I've since bought many items from their website. They have wonderful collections and more, so I would highly recommend everyone to check them out.

The Best of Both Worlds

Disney Channel has aired some of the best TV shows during the 2000s, such as Lizzie McGuire, That's So Raven, Even Stevens, and the next show I'll be highlighting on this list, Hannah Montana. This Disney Channel Original Series celebrated its 20th anniversary in March and aired a special on Disney+. I highlighted my favorite Hannah Montana songs in a story and yes, I still sing along to them to this day.

City Connect Releases Galore

Back in April, several teams released their new City Connect uniforms for the 2026 Major League Baseball season. One of them was the Texas Rangers. Their new uniforms paid homage to Mexican culture, but the reactions to them were mixed. I did a review on a couple of City Connect items I bought. Their previous City Connect uniforms were discontinued at the conclusion of 2025 regular season, which the team had worn since their debut back in 2023, which is of course, the year they won their first World Series title.

Philadelphia Phillies Part Ways with Rob Thomson

After eight seasons and a horrendous 9-19 start to the season, the Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson. Don Mattingly was named interim manager for the remainder of the season. I still maintain that they're still not a championship-caliber team. With Adolis García suffering a season-ending injury, it would be interesting if they'll win the National League West title yet again and go even further in the Postseason. However, we've seen this movie being played many times before. They win a division title, make it to the Postseason, then gets eliminated in the first round. If the Phillies, hypothetically speaking, were to make it to the World Series and win their first title since 2008, Bryce Harper would finally get what he had always wanted: a championship. Just to remind everyone, he has been with the Phillies since 2019. That was the year that the previous team he was on, the Washington Nationals, won their first World Series title. The Phillies have to really convince me this year that they can be the team that makes the rest of the teams nervous.

A Token of Appreciation: Pete Crow-Armstrong

It's been an interesting season for Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong. A month ago, during a game against their rivals, the Chicago White Sox, he was heckled by a female White Sox fan, which PCA responded by hurling profanities towards her. He would later apologize for the incident, but Major League Baseball fined him $5,000. I stated in the first part of my story regarding this incident that fans needed to act accordingly at games and also condemned their awful behavior. No player, whether you like them or not, should ever tolerate verbal abuse from fans at all. I commend PCA for taking responsibility for what he did, because he's one of my favorite players that I enjoy watching. Even though I'm not a Cubs fan, I hope he has an exciting, fulfilling career.

On June 15, 2026, Pete Crow-Armstrong hit his first career cycle in a game against the Colorado Rockies. He went 4-for-4 with a double, triple, a home run, and two RBI. If you're unfamiliar with what a cycle is in baseball, it's when a player hits a single, double, triple, and a home run in a single game. Congrats to PCA for accomplishing this monumental milestone in his career.

Final notes to add: 60 subscribers and three Top Stories

I'll have more interesting stories to publish for the second half of 2026 soon.

Links to the Original Stories

https://vocal.media/unbalanced/2006-rose-bowl-20th-anniversary

https://vocal.media/theSwamp/why-black-history-matters-in-america

https://vocal.media/wander/a-texas-homecoming

https://vocal.media/styled/my-visit-to-the-baseballism-store

https://vocal.media/geeks/celebrating-20-years-of-hannah-montana

https://vocal.media/unbalanced/my-reaction-to-the-release-of-the-2026-texas-rangers-city-connect-uniforms

https://vocal.media/unbalanced/my-thoughts-about-the-firing-of-rob-thomson

https://vocal.media/unbalanced/we-need-to-talk-about-the-pete-crow-armstrong-situation