Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training today. Spring Training's a great time to be a baseball fan. When those first images from Florida or Arizona trickle across your local sportscast, you get that chill down your spine knowing that baseball is creeping up on us. It's the time when all teams are even and every team's got a chance to be the World Champion at the end of October.
My Dodgers? My Dodgers went through their second straight offseason where the team was practically overhauled from head to toe. Names like Lofton... like Tomko... like Mueller... like Nomar... will all now be ringing through Chavez Ravine like those stars that came before them [and I'll go on record right now saying if Nomar has a great year and gets re-signed for a long term deal, I'll be the first to pick up a jersey with "GARCIAPARRA" across the back.]
Of course... for the optimist, you look at this team and say, at worst, they should be able to win the division unless there's some horrid rash of injuries. At best? Hell, you just never know. All I know is that in 1988 when I was jumping around the living room as a young lad, I never thought it'd take this long to see it happen again. I was there two seasons ago for the first Dodgers postseason win since that season... now I want to be there to see the first World Series since then.
For the pessimist? It's a holding pattern season. A good enough team to compete and if they start getting blown out? Here comes the kids. The Dodgers have arguably the best crop of prospects in baseball just bubbling under the major league level. Dodger fans ache for a time when names like Billingsley, Guzman, Loney, Martin, and so many others get put into the pages of Dodger lore.
Either way, I'm damn excited [and the Lakers playing mediocre probably helps a ton] and simply can't wait for Opening Day in a month and half's time. Dodger Stadium is gone through another renovation this offseason... a complete replacement of every seat in the stadium and a return to the original color scheme that graced it on opening day so long ago. Simply can't wait.
And on that note... I stumbled across a picture yesterday that brought a bizarre mix of sadness and joy to my heart.
Take a look...
Song I'm Listening To Currently: Big Poppa - Notorious B.I.G.
Book I'm Reading Currently: Who wants an Eragon review?! EH?!
Movie I Last Saw In The Theater: Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire [IMAX]
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1 comments:
oh i am so excited. Baseball fever! i'm bummed i might not have a chance to see the dodgers in person this season (Weekend game? Possibly. Red Eye back to boston). But looking forward to catching a Red Sox game. It is fun to be in a city that is so in love with their team - good or bad. The people talking in the streets and the tv coverage over here in boston is insane- even though it is just the pitchers and catchers. People straight up telling someone with a Yankees hat "Yankee's Suck" is such a sight to behold. Yankee fan is crazy.
Poor seats. Oh well at least they change the seats- Fenway still has the original seats that cannot fit Kirstie Alley.
GO DODGERS!
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