March 31 marks opening day for the Cubs, and I can hardly wait. I think this may be the first time in the history of me that I’ve eagerly anticipated the onset of a new sports season. In poking around the web a bit about baseball today, I found a blog Mark DeRosa had kept last season in which he briefly deconstructed his basically post-season-ending at-bat in October. If I recall correctly, he took a swing with a 2-1 count against a pitcher who had just walked two (maybe three) batters and got himself an inning-ending double-play that ultimately kept the Cubs from advancing. I think a walk would have brought in a winning run, though my memory may be off. Unless you’re a real hard-ass, you’ve gotta feel bad for the guy (though I think I probably yelled and literally jumped up and down when he took his swing), who was just trying to take a good cut at a ball and bring in an extra run on a hit. In any case, the Cubbies didn’t get a shot at the series, but the good things they set in motion last season are all set to start up again this season. I’ll keep a particularly close eye on Sam Fuld, who was pulled up from the minors (from my local AA team via a AAA team I forget where) for the playoffs and who had some key time on the field. My local team’s season begins in 53 days (according to the countdown on their site), and I’m thinking very seriously about going to opening day.

In other news, it’ll be interesting to see Torre as a Dodger. I’ve always liked that guy.

And speaking of a former Yankee, how can I help but bring up Clemens? I’m as close as I get to heart-broken over his part in the steroids/HGH fiasco currently unfolding. I’ve been a fan of his since his early days in Boston. When a person achieves as much as Clemens (or Bonds) has, you really hope they achieved it honestly and with their inborn (and cultivated) abilities. The guy who claims to have injected Clemens with illegal drugs seems pretty slimy, but Roger himself comes off as shifty and self-righteous, and that bums me out. I hope he didn’t take the drugs, and I wish there were a way to prove it, but it’s pretty hard to believe him. I sure hope MLB will crack down. Daily drug tests and instant banning from the game on a positive result don’t seem too severe to me.