Spring Training Begins In Four Weeks! Really!

Hard to believe, but pitchers and catchers report to spring training sites in Arizona and Florida in a mere four weeks. This is a time of optimism for baseball fans, when every team has a chance to get to the World Series. This was the frame of mind I was in last year, when my South Side heroes, the Chicago White Sox, were thought to be a shoo-in to make the playoffs. I watched many of the spring training games on MLB.com, listening to the banter between White Sox announcers Steve Stone and Jason Benetti. But unfortunately, as soon as the regular season started, it became clear they were a very bad team, losing game after game, and finishing the season with over 100 losses. Before the start of last season, they lost all-start first baseman Jose Abreu to free agency, and this off-season all-star shortstop Tim Anderson. They even lost play-by-play guy Jason Benetti to Detroit. And so very few fans have hope for a winning season this year. But, of course, hopeless situations are not new for the White Sox - they are more or less the norm. As for their North Side rivals, the Chicago Cubs, they actually had a chance to make the playoffs last year, before going on a losing streak the last week of the season, and with new hot-shot manager Craig Counsell, they might actually have a chance this season (but not really, of course). They are the Cubs, after all.

Meanwhile, here in Denver, my adopted home team, the Colorado Rockies, also lost over 100 games last season for the first time in their history, but actually increased their attendance figures. People in Colorado will always attend games at Coors Field just to enjoy the beautiful ballpark, the views of the mountains from the stands, and, not least of all, the party deck on the third level, which allegedly serves $3 beers before game time (I have yet to personally verify that). Since the team consistently draws close to 3 million fans a year, no matter how they play, management has no incentive to actually put together a team that might be competitive, which would start by hiring front office people that actually know how to run a baseball team. These days, any money they spend is usually on questionable, often over-the-hill players, whom I will not name, such as Kris Bryant. The photograph on the right, by the way, shows what used to be the entrance to The Sandlot, a brewpub located inside Coors Field. Once upon a time, you could go there on non-game days, look out the windows at the field, and dream about Opening Day and the team's chances for the season. No need for anyone to do that these days, and so now they are open only to ticket holders on game days. Things just keep getting shittier, don't they?