Counting Down

Twenty-six days.  The home stretch is in sight.  We’re rounding the final bend of the grotesque, baseball-less off-season.  I, for one, am not entirely sure I’ll make it through these last three+ weeks.  One more story about our closer situation may send me toppling over sanity’s edge.  One more mention of Jhonny Peralta’s weight loss may loop me into idiocy.

I don’t generally attend Opening Day.  I have a couple times, but usually defer a day or two.  As much as I want to end the months long baseball fast, I prefer to avoid triple-priced parking, and a legion of drunken fans that don’t know a whole lot about baseball.  Do you have a tradition of attending Opening Day?  I’d love to hear your reasons for going or for staying away. 

Just pushing through the turnstile again is enough to put a smile on my face.  The weather is largely immaterial.  Last year, the first game I attended included a medley of wintery delights.  It blew freezing air, snowed periodically, and sleeted for a few minutes here and there.  Good times.  I never got cold, as I was bundled like little Randy from A Christmas Story, and was armed with hand and foot warmers.  Preparation, folks.  Fans don’t get a vortex of heat blown at them like the players in the dugout.

I have a confession to make, and I’m not sure if it’s ok or not.  After Magglio Ordóñez’ departure (sob), I thought long and hard before selecting Max Scherzer as my Tiger.  I still love Max, but I also have a lot of feelings for Austin Jackson.  Can I have two Tigers?   Please?  Don’t take this to mean that I don’t love Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera.  I do.  They are players of a generation, and I feel so fortunate to have them on my team.  But it’s almost like they’re EVERYONE’S Tiger.  They belong to us all, and no one needs to choose them as his/her personal Tiger.  Just tell me it’s ok for me to have Scherzer and Jackson.  Even if you tell me it’s verboten, I’ll secretly harbor them both anyway, so whatever.

Lastly, I know I haven’t written much on here at all lately.  I am almost at a loss as to why.  Posts just used to spring readily to my mind without any apparent effort on my part.  Such has not been the case as of late.  And yet, I have been loath to shut the site down.  I don’t know.  We’ll just have to wait and see how this season goes.  Thanks for bearing with me if you have.  I’m very grateful.  Now, excuse me while I go back to my spot at the window, waiting for April 1 to arrive.