Opening Day

For baseball fans, this is the greatest day of the year. OPENING DAY – when hope burns eternal, even for the Phillies. It's especially meaningful this year.  After such a harsh winter in the Midwest and East, baseball means spring is here in only three more months.

There’s always great pomp and circumstance and the stadium is always filled. For some teams it’s the only time that happens all year. If they had “Free Car Night” in Tampa I don’t think they could sell out a game in May.

For many years I would always go to opening day at Dodger Stadium. And then of course, as a broadcaster, whatever team I was working for generally insisted I be there.

My biggest opening day thrill was calling the first game ever at Jacobs Field in Cleveland. I was doing the radio for Seattle, describing all the ceremonies (Clinton throwing out the first pitch and 102 year-old Bob Feller throwing with more velocity) and unbeknownst to me at the time, the CBS radio network picked up our feed and I was broadcasting all around the world. I'm so glad I didn't know.

My first year with Baltimore, Vice President Dan Quayle came in the booth and I interviewed him my first inning. Not a lot of comedy there. It was like playing tennis against a blanket.

My first year in Seattle the team was down 9-0 by the time I made my debut in the third inning. Since no one gave a shit about the game at that point I spent the inning discussing the stupidest ROCKY movie.

The next year we opened on the road and by the time we returned to Seattle we were 1-5 so that was a festive home opener.

Now that I’m no longer with a team my great joy is not going to opening day. Along with the tradition comes massive traffic congestion, long lines at the concession stands, and idiots who are smashed by the national anthem. As an LA fan, I now much prefer to sit home and watch the great Vin Scully call it on television.

A couple of years ago he had a bad cold and missed opening day. You would have thought the city suffered an 8.5 earthquake. There was near panic and crying in the streets. Good luck to the guy who replaces Vin Scully.

The important thing, whether you’re there or not, is that baseball is back. And not just for seven episodes like MAD MEN. It’s back every day for the next six months. There will be amazing highlights, spectacular fielding plays, one of your favorite players busted for PED’s, unlikely heroes, no-hitters, bench clearing brawls, bobbleheads, controversy, a blizzard of statistics, blockbuster trades, two managers fired, thirty pitchers needing Tommy John surgery, and some stupid Alex Rodriguez distraction.

PLAY BALL.

This post is dedicated to Lon Simmons, the longtime play-by-play voice of both the Giants and the A's who passed away yesterday.  He was 91.  Not only was he a great announcer with a spectacular voice, he was wickedly funny.  No one could make me laugh... or boo like Lon Simmons (I was a Dodger fan remember).  He is deservedly in the Hall-of-Fame.