It’s that time of year again when pitchers and catchers, soon to be followed by the rest of the position players, report to Arizona or Florida to begin Spring Training.
The common phrases of “they could really be contenders this year” or “he’s in the best shape of his life” buzz by your ear like a 95 mile per hour fast ball.
Every team has hope, no matter how slim, to win a championship. From Houston to Los Angeles to New York to Denver, if everything breaks right, their team could have a chance.
Even Indians fans, who’ve been down on their unfortunate squad and uninspiring owner the past few years, dreamed of a possible return to the playoffs as their club shelled out $48 million over four years for premier free agent center fielder Michael Bourn.
With a clever trade to acquire starting pitcher Trevor Bauer and the signing of outfielder Nick Swisher, who could blame them for anticipating the postseason?
And players, no matter if they’re in the twilight of their careers or blue chip rookies, will fight for roster spots in hopes that there isn’t a pink slip in their locker telling them better luck next year.
Some of baseball’s best players were non-roster invitees, which if they’re not a highly touted prospect, likely means that player’s career is hanging on by a thread.
In 2010, knuckleballer R.A. Dickey was a non-roster invitee to the Mets spring training. Today, he’s the reigning National League Cy Young champion and was traded for a boatload of highly touted prospects to anchor Toronto’s rotation.
Fans hope young talent that will reinvigorate teams and ignite passion.
Padres’ fans will look with eager eyes to see if third baseman Jedd Gyorko can be the offensive weapon they need to put their team over the top. And admirers of Tampa Bay will look forward to see if outfielder Wil Myers can fulfill the hype he garnered in the Royals farm system.
Injuries from past seasons will be temporarily forgotten under the warm spring sun as players always come to spring training in great shape.
Phillies outfielder Delmon Young, who had to have clauses built into his contract to make sure he stayed fit, was described as “thin and in shape” by the organization. Cleveland shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera was described by MLB.com writer Jordan Bastian as being, you guessed it, in the best shape of his life.
But the best thing about spring training isn’t all the stereotypical sayings and potential career resurrections. Those are wonderful, but the fact that the great game of baseball is less than two months from having its annual 162 game marathon to the postseason takes the cake.
Buying tickets for a Tigers game on a Wednesday night in June, eating a few hot dogs downing a few Pepsis in the warm summer air and leaving in perhaps the worst shape of my life. That’s what I’m looking forward to.
Sure, Spring Training is full of great stories and a good deal of hope, but it is ultimately a tease for the summer and fall nights spent at the ballpark, enjoying the pastime that America calls its own.
ch203310@ohiou.edu
