They’re Back!

Much older brother Dave (L) and I following a Tiger dinger -Photo credit Randy Kuzawa

At long last baseball returns to the airwaves

By Ken De Laat

For, lo, the winter is past,
The rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth;
The time of the singing of birds is come,
And the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.- Song of Solomon

There was no sound sweeter than hearing Ernie Harwell, the finest voice to ever bring baseball to my ears, open the season with his annual intro. What finer way to wave goodbye to winter than a tribute to the rebirth spring brings and then follow it up with a baseball game. Not just a baseball game but Opening Day. The day when every team starts the season tied. Tied and filled with optimism.

As a Tiger fan who began following the team circa mid 20th century, I am certain those of my ilk have a tendency, particularly at this time of year, to be a tad overly optimistic.
“If the pitchers live up to their potential, if the young players begin to hit consistently, if the team stays healthy, if Tork and Carpenter come through with some major lumber and the kid at second is all he’s supposed to be and maybe the bullpen finds the lock down guy…..then I’d say we have a good shot.”

There are reasons the team is picked for 3rd place in a weak Central Division and many of them have to do with the youth of the team and a lineup that didn’t exactly inspire fear in opposing mound guys last year. They got guys with a lot of pop but there were more than enough bad at bats in crucial situations and some rather extended slumps during the season. The pitching is anybody’s guess. There are no starters from the group that began in that role last season and a lot of question marks when it comes to durability.

But hey, I’m a Tiger fan. I think the pitching staff will most certainly live up to its billing and those young guys are going to feed off each other sharing some hot batting streaks up and down the order. Carpenter and Torkelson will be our first pair of 30 dinger guys since Miggy and J.D. did it in 2015 and Colt Keith turns out to not just be the real deal but puts together a rookie of the year season. The bullpen is chock filled with lively arms and A.J. Hinch has finally got the talent that allows him some room for creative managerial moves.

After all, it's Opening Day. By mid May we could be in first place being chased by those troublesome Twins or buried by yet another failure to get traction early in the season. Perhaps the Tig’s will become the Orioles of last season, rising beyond expectations and moving into this year's top contender lists. Hopeful they don’t emulate another east coast team, the Mets whose ability to underperform in recent years is nearly legendary.

All predictions aside, I'm just happy to hear baseball again. It’s not Ernie and will miss the late Jim Price’s commentary, but I enjoy Dickerson and he paints a good picture of the game. At 4:10pm tomorrow I will park myself in the area known as the N3WH office (that sometimes goes by the name “when are you going to do something about that mess”), tune in the game and drink in the onset of yet another 6 month marathon of the greatest game ever invented.
As well as perhaps a beer or two.
Go Tigers!
 
“I believe in the Church of Baseball. I've tried all the major religions and most of the minor ones. And the only church that truly feeds the soul, day-in day-out, is the Church of Baseball.”- Annie Savoy, Bull Durham