A Fresh Start // Opening Day 2017

Opening Day is my favorite secular holiday. 

I know it's not a holiday according to the calendar, but it should be. Baseball is back and it's a fresh start. In the Anne of Green Gables series, Anne says, "Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it." That's what a new baseball season is like. A clean slate with limitless possibilities. On Opening Day, everyone has a chance at October. 

For some reason, there are those in baseball who seem to think it's necessary to predict who will do what, what the standings will look like, etc. I don't understand this tendency and I ignore all the numbers and predictions for two reasons that are interconnected:

1. There are no major injuries yet. Sure, you might start the year without a player for a little while, but you're not without several key players at the same time like you might be later on. A team with all the potential in the world can't win if they aren't a whole team for prolonged periods of time. 
2. Baseball is finicky. There is so much luck in baseball. Games can be won or lost on a seeing-eye hit, a bloop single, or any other crazy little thing that isn't anyone's fault. A player can get injured on an innocent play. You never know. 

Tigers fans can attest that these things are true, and I'm sure many other teams' fans can as well. It comes down often to who has the least amount of injuries and how many of those injuries are with your pitching. Because, as we all know, it all comes down to pitching.

But we don't need to worry about all that yet. That's all in the future. For now, sit back, turn on your TV or radio, and relax, because....

IT'S OPENING DAY!!!!!!!