So! My fish is now safely back in his bowl and I am ready to rock and roll once more. I’m catching up on the baseball news I missed while I slept (and slept and slept) and I think things are looking pretty fabulous for the Giants. Blogging Spring Training is always a very welcome challenge to me, but a challenge all the same. Aside from (doesnotjinx) injuries (doesnotjinxagin), the Giants always look pretty fabulous to me, just by nature of the fact that they are wearing baseball uniforms and throwing balls and swinging bats. I mean, would it really be fair of me to demand more of them? In addition to that, I hate writing Spring Training game recaps almost as much as I hate reading them, so those are out the question for my blog. Before you snatch my baseball fan card out of my hands for that particular bombshell, allow me to explain myself. Game recaps tend to be a snooze, unless they have lots of hilarious quotes in them and since I don’t have all-access passes to the stadium or anything, I don’t have my own quotes. Lastly, there’s a lot of downerness. Especially when Timmy and Vogelsong and Surkamp are all basically questionable human beings. (Ballplayers, that is.)
So! This is all to explain why I’m writing the list below. To fill the obvious void I see. Okay? Okay.
Let’s proceed, then. 10 Things I Am Adoring About Spring Training. Here goes.
10. It’s Spring Training. And there are bees. I could just stop the list right here.
9. The pitchers all throwing two innings and us all whooping like mad. I totally do it, but it still cracks me up every time. Let’s just say we get to see a lot of different pitchers out there every game.
8. It reminds me of the drama of years past. I’m talking Michael Young vs. Jon Daniels, Albert Pujols vs. Cardinals, Barry Bonds vs. The Rest of the World. There have been some epic battles and this time of year always brings them back to mind. There’s no warring quite like Spring Training warring.
7. The hideous black uniforms. Just kidding. I don’t like those at all. I hate those. But I had to mention ‘em all the same. Fashion faux-pas of extraordinary proportions must be brought to light. Just because I wear all black all the time doesn’t mean baseball players can pull that deal off.
6. The pictures. By the time the regular season rolls around, I think the media figures we are over the feel-good TwitPics of assorted players doing assorted things (read: nothing). But we’re not. We’re really not. We love them at all times. ‘Specially now.
5. Battles of the first base sort. I still have an affinity for Aubrey Huff, Brandon Belt poses with baby giraffes, for Pete’s sake, and I have been quite taken with Brett Pill’s game. So my stance on the 1B battles is TBA. But I am enjoying the show, for sure.
4. Half of my besties is back, of course. Which besties, you might ask? I’m talking about Jon Miller and Dave Flemming, of course, Baseball Broadcasters and Besties Extraordinaire. Dave isn’t dropping in until Opening Day, but Jon should keep me going until then.
3. Baffling, cryptic comments from everyone and anyone. Am I really the only one who feeds of those hilarious, masked statements from All People Who Have Connections to Baseball? The offseason drivel just doesn’t hit the spot like this does.
2. Buster Posey being alive and kicking and baseball-playing. ‘Nuff said. Tomorrow, which is supposed to be his first start of the spring, is going to be legen… wait for it, wait for it… dary! Seriously. Legendary.
1. Yu Darvish. Yep, that’s me, the Giants fan. But seriously, I was just so absolutely, terribly excited to see his first start and will continue to be excited about his next 500 starts. I love me some Yu. And I want to prove that Jon Daniels was obviously completely in paying him a billion and one dollars. Personal stake in this, y’all.
Diamond Girl
