Hope Springs Eternal

At the start of each semester, I take a look at the classes I have to go to each day, what subjects they are, and reflect on the semester before it. How did I do? Did I ace Astronomy, but fall a little behind on my Latin? Did I have a stretch of bad test grades in the beginning, but somehow found a way to pull off a B+? These are the questions I ask myself, and every semester I have the same feeling: I am going to get a 4.0 this semester. Every project will be completed on time to the best of my ability, every test will be passed with flying colors. Yet, midway through the semester, the landscape looks vastly different. That Comm class? Acing it. That Thermodynamics class with the lab? Not so much. And by the end, I am exhausted. I didn't get a 4.0. Every class wasn't as easy as I thought, nor did I put in my best efforts each and every day. And then we get a break, and by the next semester, hope springs eternal.

Opening Day is exactly like that. Every team looks at their squad, their schedule, their division, and thinks: "We've got a shot to pull this one out". That young kid that tore up the minors and made the team out of spring training? He's gonna be the Rookie of the Year. The number two starter who didn't have his best year last year? He's going to bounce back. Everybody thinks they have a shot.

And why not? That's not to say that the Royals have as equally great a shot to win the World Series as the Red Sox, but that's not the point. Opening Day is about thinking about the future, envisioning successes that come out of the blue and guys realizing their full potential. If you don't think you can win, you don't belong in this game.

Opening Day is the greatest of all days in baseball because every team is equal. Every team is as close to the dogpile on the mound after the final out in the World Series as any other team. And then the summer wears on, pretenders fade from view, and the best of the best duke it out for a ring. And then, after the trees lose their leaves, and that groundhog sees his shadow (or not), everybody looks at their roster, and dreams of the chase for the ring in October once again.