Storyline: It’s a rite of passage. Men become boys. Kids get their gloves out of the closet. After a long winter, it’s Spring Training. Time for baseball. Better days are finally here.
The calendar has finally turned from February to March, despite the extra day for Leap Year. With that comes the first taste of baseball after a long winter of hibernation.
For those lucky enough to have the MLB Network on their local cable system the first games of the exhibition season are live from Florida and Arizona. For baseball junkies (and the casual baseball fan, too) March 1 is the first day of eight months of non-stop games. It will end in late October with the crowning a World Series champion.
Courtesy: springtrainingonline.com
No matter what team you root for, watching the first games of a new season brings back memories, whether as a former player or just a spectator … and everyone starts off as a potential first-place team.
A lot of players’ names won’t be familiar as teams get a good look at up-and-coming stars. Camps are stocked with players during the first week of games, but the numbers will dwindle as Opening Day gets closer. Many of these young guns will be on minor league clubs–sooner rather than later.
Still, they’re eager to play, excited to learn, and committed to do everything they can to show manager and coaches they belong on the roster when teams head North to play ‘real games.’ Not many teams have spots available. But who knows? Someone, who almost made it last season, may make it.
Spring Training is a time when players and fans unite to enjoy a month-long sojourn in the quiet, cozy confines of parks that the Grapefruit and Cactus League have to offer. It’s a joy, a return to childhood, the atmosphere surreal. Players, whether storied veterans or eighteen-year-old prospects, get to mingle with fans and create an atmosphere of what baseball used to be in America.
But it doesn’t last. Opening Day is when ‘Big Boys’ start playing a man’s game. The March-laden closeness and comradery gets replaced by wins and losses.
The month of March is short, but there are enough games played to allow everyone an opportunity to see what their team may look like in the upcoming 162-game battle. A story emerges each and every day about a potential star in the making. That brings a sense of ‘perhaps this is the year’ for all clubs – even though, going in, many teams won’t make the cut after May.
Courtesy: azcentral.com
That’s entirely fine for true-blue fans, who just love baseball for what it is – America’s pasttime. It’s a family affair, when dads and moms, kids, grandparents, uncles and aunts, all wear their favorite team colors, rooting to ‘bring it home’ for a World Series win.
It all starts with Spring Training in March. But not everyone has the opportunity to watch these games during the day, especially on weekdays when most folks have to work. But this author is lucky enough to work out of the house. So a little hooky on the first day of Spring Training takes precedence over a client memo or a conference call.
Those clients will have to wait a day or two. It’s the Major League Baseball season debut. Nothing should stand in the way of games that make no difference come Opening Day.
It’s a rite of passage, passed down from generation to generation. Everyone is a kid. Employers and families will just have to understand that this is the real ‘spring fever.’ Men will be boys. Kids will get their gloves and bats out of the closet. After a long winter, baseball is a true respite, especially for those who want to forget about the rest of this crazy world. There are better days to come.
