This weekend, the official start of Spring Training kicked off as pitchers and catchers had their first workouts in Sarasota, Florida.
Ok, so it has been a mild winter up in the Mid-Atlantic. In fact, it is supposed to be in the 60’s this week. It snowed once from what I can recall over the past few months, but I’m glad baseball is back
However, this is a time of optimism, drawing out lineups, and figuring out the pitching staff. There will be debates on how many wins the Orioles will have this season, if they have improved (seriously) and will the moves made will pan out.
The grass is green on the baseball fields; plus, players for the most part right now are laid back and ready to get to the business at hand.
We’ll see the same old faces, some new ones and those wanting to make a lasting impression in camp despite already knowing their fate.
For most fans, much as myself, the next few weeks there’s pretty much very little of importance on a news front – at least for me.
We should be thankful for the press and bloggers that are down in camp relaying the latest news, tidbits, insight and of course players quoting that, “they are in the best shape of their lives”.
In addition, this year, we have a lot of new players to follow, prospects and we’ll check in on Dylan Bundy – the team’s 2011 1st round draft pick – who is in major league camp by virtue of being on the 40-man roster.
I know most are picking the Orioles to finish last and have a 15th consecutive losing season. My tag team partner James hopes for better, as so do I, and legions of Orioles fans. The poor play has gone on too long – we just need something, anything to show that the Birds are righting the ship.
I’ll be heading down to Florida early this time (again) – in about two weeks – as part of my annual spring vacation. I won’t be down there as long as I ordinarily am due to work and other events, but it’s good to get away from Maryland for a bit.
I’m sure we’ll have more to say on the blog as time goes along, but baseball is officially back.
