Spring Hopes Eternal

Winter continues to hold on in northern Maine. Yes, the temperature has inched up so that the daily highs are around 33 instead of 3 degrees, but the snow is still on the ground. No crocus has dared to show itself. The robins haven't even thought of returning, though a lonely goose was spotted yesterday. When the wind howls, we are still bundling ourselves up and running to the car. The long death-grip of winters up here are hard to understand unless you live in Maine or the Dakotas, Alaska and the upper reaches of Minnesota. But it is baseball season and that means hope.

The Fan hasn't always lived so far north. The early years were lived in places that still had winter, but they were less severe and spring came sooner. The birthplace was Bergenfield, New Jersey, a town of four square miles and 36,000 people. That's the same population as the entire county up here in northern Maine. Bergenfield was, of course, a suburb. The George Washington Bridge was only twelve miles away. We could sneak on the golf course in the northern part of town from first sneaking on the property of where the nuns lived. The golf course abutted Knickerbocker Road, a name like many others that belied the area's Dutch past. The names are only symbolic as the area now is strictly a bustling and hustling city with big maple trees where long lines and car accidents are just as common. The golf course was a place to see land that wasn't totally covered with buildings. But the best thing about sneaking onto the golf course, especially at night, was that, on a good day, you could see the Statue of Liberty.

The Fan's sister is the only family member who still lives in that area. She's worked in New York City for forty plus years and has done the bus to subway routine thousands of times. Before the Fan moved north, treks were taken into the city, sometimes to meet the sister for lunch. New York City was like the hometown on steroids. Everything was multiplied a thousand times. How can so many people live in one small place? The streets are wide and so are the sidewalks, but neither could ever be wide enough to support the cars and the people that want to travel along them.

And the craziest people lived there. There was one guy who had a whistle in his mouth and his thing was he had to walk in a straight line. If anyone blocked his ability to do that, he would blow the whistle. The Fan remembers wondering how the guy had managed to live so long without the whistle being crammed down his throat. Another guy spent his entire day crossing the street in a square pattern: South, West, North, East and then start all over.

There are parks all over New York City, but their statues are covered in pigeon poop and the grass and few trees all clung to life in a losing battle against the constant fumes and trampling of people. Central Park, is of course, a diamond in the city, but even that place is a place to avoid at night when all kinds of scary things happen.

Like most urban areas, there is one place of refuge: The Stadium. Though stadiums are also large concrete structures surrounded by concrete and steel everywhere else in the city, once you walked through the ticket gate and into the concourse, you could hear the organ playing a festive tune. Walking past vendors of all types, you followed the crowd urged ever onward by the call of something truly different than the rest of city life. Once you found your gate and your section, you walked through a short tunnel to a place that took your breath away. The baseball diamond.

For day games, it was a magical place of green grass and brown orange dirt. Workers with long hoses sprayed that dirt with an artistry of geometric precision slowly making that dirt darker until it was all the same hue. The patch of green and openness held a promise like no place else in the city. You knew magic was going to happen there. There are other diversions in the city such as movie houses and play houses. They offer a magic too, but they were magic without the sun and the breeze. They might have shows that offered hope and message, but ultimately, they showed the same shows over and over. In the Stadium, a different drama happened every day.

We are spoiled by watching our sports on television. And while watching a game on television is a blessed event, there is nothing like sitting in a Stadium watching the same drama unfold. Somehow, each person in the stands become a part of the same organism. We are all living and dying watching the same story. Foul balls become a festive event and people turn to each other and share the excitement of what almost was. In cities where you are taught not to look at people in the eye, once in the Stadium, people pass along your hot dog and your drink and think nothing of passing your money down to the vendor at the end of the row. We are community.

We all gasp at the same time and cheer at the same time and boo at the same time. We rise to our feet in unison. We all get fooled by a fly ball to the outfield each and every time. About a third of us are keeping score and hoping our pencil points don't break as we mark our "K" and draw the line to first base for a single. Each half inning brings an intermission where we take in the sights while listening to music. We all take in the little things like ball boys running to and fro in rehearsed tasks that keep a game moving smoothly. In the sixth inning, we watch the grounds crew with their magical mats smooth out the infield. We watch infielders make their own patterns in the fresh dirt. We shout at players we know can't hear us. We clap in rhythm unexpectedly. Our souls all become interwoven at the drama we are witnessing together.

For some of us, those collective moments happened all too rarely, especially those of us with limited means and opportunity. But they live inside us forever and a part of us relives them whenever we watch another game on television. That baseball usually happens in warm weather makes it different than football. The more clothes you wear, the more you are separated from your neighbor. It's why those of us in northern climates are more conservative by nature. The shirtsleeve crowd has an easier time bonding over an event taking place before us.

Those memories last a lifetime and add to the hope that comes when a baseball season starts all over again. Social media that has proliferated our society allows us to see that people all over this continent feel the same way. People we meet electronically hope just as much for Opening Day in St. Louis or Toronto. Opening Day gives us all something in common no matter who we root for. It opens our eyes to fans with long-time pain rooting for perennial losers like the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Kansas City Royals. It gives us a glimpse of what is important to them and we end up rooting for their Billy Butler and Pedro Alvarez. We are all fans of this great game of baseball.

And for us, Opening Day is a national celebration. And even if snow is still on the ground and the winds still make you huddle and pray for the car heater to work, we know that somewhere it is spring. Somewhere, the grass is green and players in clean white and gray uniforms are going to thrill us for another season. We all start together with the exact same record. We all hope for the same thing. It's truly a wonderful time of year. In some ways, it might even beat Christmas. It is baseball season and we are all young again and stand in wonder and hope.

Rejoice people. It's our time again. There is no way of predicting how it will all turn out. But wherever we are, we are symbolically connected by this lifelong passion...this love...this game that is inside all of us. Enjoy every minute of it.

Opening Day Starters Speak Volumes

Let's face it. Every team wants to win the first game of the season. Even though the first game is simply that and the beginning of a long, 162-game grind, everyone wants to start off on the right foot (or the left foot depending on which arm a pitcher uses). And because of that fact, it has become symbolic for teams when naming their Opening Day starter. Teams go with the pitcher that best represents the team's hope for the season. He is the face of the staff, the veteran that has given the team years of consistently good effort. But it doesn't always work out that way. David Wells started the 2005 season for the Boston Red Sox when he wasn't even on the 2004 Championship Red Sox team. And so, the Opening Day starters seem to tell us a lot about a team. Let's look at them all:

• Tigers at Yankees (Thurs): This is your prototypical starting day match up with Justin Verlander facing C.C. Sabathia.  Both pitchers anchor their team's pitching staff and much of the season's hopes are pinned to their success. Sabathia and Verlander have been about the most durable and trustworthy pitchers in the game. No surprises here. The only question is Verlander because he always seems to start slow in April. Perhaps starting in March will make a difference?
• Braves at Nationals (Thurs): The Braves' choice of Derek Lowe is somewhat surprising. He would be considered by most to be the team's third best starter. But Lowe carried the team in September last year while Hudson tired down the stretch. Tommy Hanson will get plenty of Opening Day starts in his career. Livan Hernandez starting for the Nationals speaks chunks about the National's rotation. Livan has certainly earned our respect for hanging in there year after year, but he would be a fourth or fifth starter on most teams.
• Brewers at Reds (Thurs): Yovani Gallardo is the right choice for the Brewers. He came into his own last season when he was just about the Brewers' only good starting pitcher. If Greinke hadn't hurt his ribs playing basketball, this might have been different. But Greinke's injury leads the Brewers to make the right choice. The Reds starting their season with Edison Volquez really speaks to the general unease this writer has for the Reds' rotation. Volquez and Cueto have both come to represent big-time talent and no consistency. Bronson Arroyo was the team's most reliable starter last year and he will take the ball over the weekend despite a bout of mono (who was HE kissing?). Much of the Reds hopes are pinned to the considerable talents of guys like Volquez. But that is just as scary as it is promising.
• Angels at Royals (Thurs): Jared Weaver is the Angels' stud. He is easily the team's ace and leader. Which makes it all the stranger that the Angels made Weaver go through arbitration this winter. He is the right choice for the Angels in a season that has more questions than a two year old. The Royals begin the season with Luke Hochevar. That seems like a weird choice but when you have a rotation that figures to have five starters with an ERA over 4.50, what are you going to do? Francis is new, so that would be a slap to the guys that have been there. Chen was allowed to walk into free agency so that the Royals could sign him at their price. So, despite his decent season last year, you aren't going to get Chen on Opening Day. Hochevar is all you have left. Cheer up KC fans. Better days are coming.
• Padres at Cardinals (Thurs): Matt Latos was supposed to get the ball Opening Day, which is a lot to put on a guy in his second full season. But Latos is hurt leaving the Padres to open with Tim Stauffer. That doesn't leave Padre fans with a whole lot of optimism, does it? The Cardinals start their ace, Chris Carpenter, who could be starting his last year in St. Louis. This Fan is worried about Carpenter's health. He didn't look that good down the stretch last year and now he has a weakened defense behind him. But make no mistakes about it, Carpenter represents this Cardinals era from a pitching standpoint.
• Giants at Dodgers (Thurs): There are no surprises here. Lincecum is one of the best in the business and Kershaw broke out last season at such a young age to take his place among the best starters in the league.
• Astros at Phillies (Friday): Brett Myers was the Astros best pitcher last year (though Wandy Rodriguez had a great second half). So he is your obvious choice to begin the season. But many will be surprised if Myers can repeat his 2010 season and if he will do so for the Astros for the entire season. Of course the Phillies go with Roy Halladay. Who else would there be? With a rotation full of aces, Halladay is clearly in a class of his own.
• Pirates at Cubs (Friday): The Pirates top pitcher? Kevin Correia? Ugh. It's going to be another long season in Pittsburgh. The offense is starting to get interesting, especially if Alvarez hits. But the rotation is not even Triple A-worthy. Correia? Wow. The Cubs surprisingly went with Ryan Dempster. Zambrano is probably their best pitcher, but after his troubles last year, it seems right to give the ball to Dempster, who has kept out of the limelight and simply takes the ball every fifth day. The reality though, is that Zambrano has to have an ace-like season for the Cubs to have a chance.
• White Sox at Indians (Friday): Mark Buehrle gets the not for the White Sox. Buehrle is an innings eater who promises once again to be league average at best. Why the White Sox don't admit John Danks is their best pitcher is a mystery to this observer. Fausto Carmona is probably the only choice the Indians have. He's the best of what is one of the weakest rotations in baseball. Perhaps the team will surprise us, but the offense better be really, really good if Carmona is your ace.
• Red Sox at Rangers (Friday): Jon Lester has become the top guy on what is a deep rotation. Lester is a perennial Cy Young candidate, all the more remarkable considering he was battling cancer just a few short years ago. The Rangers go with their de facto ace, C. J. Wilson. Wilson is a huge key for the Rangers this year. This author is afraid of the innings he pitched last year after being a clsoer in the years before. He has a quad problem, but is still listed as the Opening Day starter. His season will bear watching.
• Diamondbacks at Rockies (Friday): The Fan has already devoted a column on having Ian Kennedy anointed the Opening Day starter. Enough was said there about if Kennedy is your best, you have a weak rotation. The Rockies have the luxury of starting their season with the Magnificent Ubaldo Jiminez. Jiminez could be a factor once again in Cy Young voting.
• Twins at Blue Jays (Friday): The Twins are going with Carl Pavano, a pitcher they refused to sign before free agency and then waited for the market to bottom out before signing. The Twins simply don't like Francisco Liriano, who is easily their best pitcher. There are 29 other teams that would take him if given the chance. The Blue Jays give the ball to Ricky Romero, who was solid last season and one of the young starters the Blue Jays need to have a good season, especially with Morrow opening the season on the DL. Projections aren't high on Romero and project Cecil to be better, but the Jays need all their young pitchers to have good seasons. If that happens, it's going to be a fun season in Toronto.
• Mets at Marlins (Friday): Mike Pelfrey certainly doesn't seem like an ace. But that's who the Mets will have leading off their season. Santana is out and there really isn't any other choice. Pelfrey has to have a good season for the Mets not to be a joke by the All Star break. The Marlins have John Johnson pitching out of the gate. Johnson was right up there with Roy Halladay last year until he was shut down to save his young arm. Johnson is an ace in every way.
• Orioles at Bay Rays (Friday): Jeremy Guthrie again will start the Orioles' season. You can sniff all you want at Guthrie, but he was very good down the stretch under Showalter. Matusz will have years to be the ace. But he has to prove he can perform for an entire season. The Bay Rays go with David Price, one of the best pitchers in the American League. Price is fantastic and will be a perennial Cy Young candidate as well as a Twitter all star.
• Mariners at Athletics (Friday): The Mariners may not have much, but they have an ACE! Felix Hernandez begins his defense of his Cy Young award, an award he could dominate for years and years. The Athletics begin with Trevor Cahill. Cahill won 18 games for the team last season and appears to be the spiritual leader of that staff. But projections warn of serious regression this year for Cahill, who probably isn't the best pitcher on his own team.

There you have it. Those are your Opening Day starters. Plenty of aces are in the list, but also plenty of question marks. Oh, and in case you were wondering, only the great Bob Feller started a team's season with a no-hitter. That happened on Opening Day, 1940. Tomorrow morning, the Fan will begin his season-long and daily feature of picking the day's games. The Fan will see you then.

Opening Day Is Messed Up

Opening Day in a baseball season should be a national celebration. Heck, it should even be a national holiday. Kids should be off from school to watch the first game either in a stadium or on television. But the schedule has messed things all up. Only twelve teams will have Opening Day with the other eighteen teams waiting for Friday to open the season. What's with that? How can we get Opening Day to be a holiday when not even half of the teams are even playing?

There are two requirements for Opening Day. First, every team should be playing and secondly, every game should be a day game. One of the best parts of Opening Day is looking at that very first, brand-spanking new box score of the season. All those box scores should be available by early evening at the latest. But that's not going to happen because ESPN has to have an evening game to battle the likes of American Idol. And so we'll get the Giants and the Dodgers at 8 P.M. ET and we can listen to the announcers talk about the shadows between the pitcher and the batter for at least three or four innings.

Baseball, in its ultimate wisdom, has decided to open the season in stages. It's like a dogsled race or something.  Twelve teams will actually play on Opening Day. Twenty-two teams will play on Opening Day, Part Two on Friday. But the math isn't right. That's because four of the teams that played on Opening Day, Part One will play again on Opening Day, Part Two. Confused yet? And four of those teams playing on Friday will not start their games until 10:05 P.M. (ET). Ugh!

It won't be until Saturday until all thirty teams are playing the same day. At that point, all thirty dogsleds will have checked into the check point area. This whole deal is poorly constructed.

At least we'll have one thing to be thankful for. At least nobody this year is starting their season in Japan or England or Puerto Rico. That's a plus. The big point here is that Opening Day should be Opening Day. Every team should be in action so that the entire country can celebrate the beginning of the season together. Anything else is like having some people celebrate New Years in China.