Hope Springs...

Opening Day arrives. The slate is clean. For a fleeting moment, we can at least hope that Jim didn't totally FUBAR this team. Good times.

Go Cubs!

Things I Know After One Week

As I sat and watched Len Casper finally accomplish his goal of jinxing Lilly's no-hit bid yesterday, I reflected on the week that was. From a Cubs perspective, it had been a good week. Two series wins, an opening day victory for Z and another masterful pitching performance from Theodore "Rosy" Lilly. While you can't really make an informed decision after 7 games, I will. Here is what I know after a week of baseball.

1) Ted Lilly might be the most underrated Cubs pitcher this or any year.
While continuing to remind us every chance he got that Lilly had "only allowed a walk so far" and "the Cubs had the only hits in the game" and "the Rockies were hitless," Len Casper mentioned a stat that floored me. Lilly has now taken a no-hitter into the 7th in 3 of his past 5 starts. Wow. That's pretty friggin' amazing. Lost in the shadow of Z's "intensity," Harden's "durability" and Dempster's "hijinxery," Lilly's consistency is often overlooked. All he does is take the ball every fifth day and dominate. It's like Marquis, only the opposite. I doff my cap to you, sir.

2) Reed Johnson Likes Him Some Drama
Like so many Cubs fans, I cursed the moment Prince made contact with that pitch Sunday night. That ball was gone, as was the lead and probably the game. I was only watching to see how far he hit it. Then I saw Reed setting himself up near the wall. I thought it was wishful thinking on his part, but admired the effort. Then I watched him leap. I still doubted him, but applauded his moxy. Then my jaw hit the floor as he reached out, snagged the ball and landed. I will doubt him no more. My apologies.

3) Kevin Gregg is...I have no idea.
Honestly, I have trouble understanding how he gets anyone out. But he does...sometimes. I find myself holding my breath with each pitch. I think it's because I'm not used to watching him yet (or at least I hope that's what it is). What I do know is that I don't picture myself uttering the phrase, "We got this, Gregg's coming in..." at any point this year.

4a) Ian Snell Isn't a Caucasian.
I have had Ian Snell on probably 90% of my fantasy teams over the years (yes, suck at fantasy baseball). We have a tumultuous history to say the least and I was pretty confident I knew everything there was to know about this "talented" pitcher. Imagine my surprise when I turned on the Pirates game (thanks again for the free week of MLB Extra Innings, DirecTV) and he wasn't a lanky, white dude. His name is Ian for god's sake. I thought it was a no-brainer.

4b) Aaron Harang Should Not Be In HD....EVER!
I IMed Martin while watching Harang pitch this week wondering if he had a functioning liver. The man looks like he is one coughing fit away from dying on the mound. I can't believe that no one is talking about how amazing it is that he can pitch a 3-hit shutout with the gout. Unreal.

5) There are Subtle Differences Between Len Casper and Hawk Harrelson Sharing Bad News
I was flipping between the Sox game and the Cubs pregame yesterday when the sad news about Harry Calas's passing reached both announcers. Len invited Pat Hughes onto the broadcast and they spent the next 20 minutes discussing what he meant to not only Philly fans, but fans of baseball in general. I switched back over to the Sox game and was greeted with this from Hawk:

(paraphrasing)
(excited) So it's 8-4 good guys as we go into the top of the 5th! As I was saying last inning, news is that...uh...Harry Calas...uh...long-time voice of the Phillies...has....uh....he's dead. (awkward pause not filled by Steve Stone) I remember the saddest news I have ever received in the booth...when...uh...Donny Drysdale died. (pause) So, Stoney...how many dogs you have these days?

See, I told you it was subtle.

Go Cubs.

Fukudome...the next Jerome Walton?

I kid. I kid.

You know baseball is back when I'm sitting on the Brown Line hitting "refresh now" repeatedly on my phone on the way home from work. I did manage to scream like a crazy person after seeing "Fukudome hits 3-run homer." Scared the crap out of my fellow riders.

So they lost. So Theriot is going to be the death of me. So Kerry Wood was not a steal in round 27 of our keeper draft. So it only took one day to think the phrase "Oh yeah, we would totally rather have Fontenot than Murton in there when we need a clutch hit." So what. Just enjoy this clip and forget the rest (at least for a minute or two).




Awesome.

Go Cubs.

There's Something About Opening Day...

No other sport has a day like today. Not the NFL. Not the NBA. Not that sport on ice with sticks. Only MLB has an Opening Day that means something.

Today, the very young, the very old and the very drunk gather to pay homage to the greatest game, America's game. Baseball. It doesn't matter what team you root for, hope springs eternal today. From the Yankees and Red Sox all the way down to the (Devil) Rays and Pirates, fans of EVERY franchise flock to parks (and whatever the Cell is) across the country thinking the same thing...

"This could be the year."

It usually isn't, but on this day is doesn't matter. On this day everything is special. The grass smells fresher. The crack of the bat sounds louder. The chalk looks brighter. The floor under your seat feels less sticky. On this day everything IS perfect. Throw in a Air Force fly-by, a ceremonial first pitch by a hometown hero, a national anthem belted out by an ACTUAL professional singer and you can begin to understand why Opening Day is so remarkable.

So take a moment today. Forget about Z's struggles on baseball's first day. Disregard your fears about the rotation or the bullpen or the lack of a true lead-off hitter and just soak in the game. If you are lucky enough to attend a game today, just stand in the concourse for a second and feel the electricity. If can't attend, turn on the TV or radio and let the sights and sounds just wash over you.

This is it. The wait is over. Opening Day is here again and for at least an afternoon, everyone is rooting for a first place team.

It's time for the two greatest words ever uttered.

Play Ball.

Go Cubs.