Well, here we are again. Hard to believe this is Season Number Nine for the Belfry, but it is. And Opening Day is here!

It's difficult to wax too poetic this year, though, for a couple of reasons.

1. The current starting pitching staff - although this isn't 'supposed' to be a winning season by any stretch, the lack of prospects in the rotation casts a pall over the prospect (nay, certainly) of watching a bunch of not-even-journeymen get their heads handed to them night after night. This is not to say we advocate rushing the current golden boys to the majors. but the concept of a rebuilding team that can't even find ONE starter among all of the guys who looked, say, two-three seasons ago as potential big-league pitchers is disconcerting, if not downright troublesome.

2. The ongoing lack of position prospects in the pipeline. sure, we're going to see Pie and Jones this year, and Wieters later on, but other than some folks' enthusiasm for Reimold, there isn't much to look forward to on that front. Andy insists you can 'fill the holes' with free agents, but isn't that what the Orioles have been doing for the past ten years? And we all know how that's turned out.

3. The Yankees are in town. Why MLB saddled any team on the East Coast with the Yankees for an opener is beyond me; it's cruel and unusual punishment. This is an Opening Day I think I'd pass on, even if I had the day off. Why wants to go to Opening Day with half the ballpark filled up with braying fans of the Evil Empire? They should have opened in Kansas City, or Seattle. The only more inappropriate place would have been Tampa, whose celebration of their pennant-winning club would have been spoiled by a preponderance of Yankee fans, who would have blissfully ignored that Tampa thoroughly embarrassed them a season ago. (By the way, with all apologies to J.R., wasn't it a little surreal to see the Phillies celebrating their Series win last night? <after the finish of the past two WBC's, I think it appropriate to not refer to a Series win as the 'World Championship' any more> Even all these months later, I still feel like I'm going to wake up and find that the Phillies didn't actually win, though last night's 4-1 loss to those Bombin' Braves might have been the beginning of a season-long reality check. I did gag a little when Jon miller referred to the Brotherly Love locals as 'the Phillies' wonderful fans.')

BUT...

There's Camden Yards. Boog's. Jones and Wieters and Pie (Oh My!), Jones and Wieters and Pie (Oh My!), Jones and Wieters and Pie (Oh MY!)...sorry about that. I got carried away!

And there's the Belfry and all the fun and friendship, friendly argument and frolic that comes with it.

After a long winter, I'm ready. The sun is just coming up here at 6:30, and I can hear a bird singing outside the window. Can it be an Oriole?

Let's Play Ball!