101: Pitchers & Catchers Report

Mechanisville, VA – As winter continues to cast its pall upon our  very souls with abounding  dampness and a chill that permeates to our very cores, the words “pitchers and catchers report” seem blissfully near. Oh how we all are longing for that smell of freshly mowed grass as the scent of peppers, onions and Italian sausages frying on a grill waft by our nostrils – like Smoky the Bear, growling and a-prowling and sniffing the air – only we will be hoping to catch the sweet aroma of spring.

Ah springtime, when all is new again.

The hope that the promising rookie we have read so much about while huddled around the hot stove is finally ready to hoist the team upon his strong, young shoulders and carry them to that promise land of playoffs.

We’re hoping that the wily old veteran has one more good season left in  his bionic knees and can   regain the once-powerful stroke that brought glory to the home nine for so many years.

That moves to a new position will not affect an all-star and the new acquisition will live up to his promise.

That the rotator cuffs, ligament and tendons of pitchers young and old will hold up through the long grueling season from early spring past the hot dog days of summer.

Yes, soon baseball fans will be able to shed their bulky sweaters and down-lined parkas for the flowery shirts and Bermuda shorts that will revel the ravages of time and age as their pale skin is once again exposed to sunlight.

Spring.  That time of year when all hope is renewed, the ledgers are even, last season fades from memory and the names of players previously unknown grace the lineup cards of thirty teams, all striving to be the last one standing in far away October.

Yes, the doldrums of winter are still with us, flu season still abounds but friends, there is still hope as we await for “pitchers and catchers report”, those sweet words that are the time-honored harbinger of springtime. Just as the robins flying north and the swallows retuning to Capistrano let us know the warmth of spring is upon us, the smell of neatsfoot oil and BenGay will let us know that “pitchers and catchers report” is a reality and not just wistful thinking during a long cold winter’s night.

~Gil~

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