Each year the excitement created by Opening Day is something that energizes the heartfelt joys of baseball. The anticipation of a new season is realized and whether you’re a player, manager, coach, scout, front office person or just a good old fan like myself the goosebumps created each and every year when the day arrives are something that those who love this game never tire of. 🥰
It’s opening day for not only the Phillies but also Reading, Jersey Shore and Clearwater. Aaron Nola takes the pill for the Phillies, James McArthur for Reading, Ben Brown for Jersey Shore and Rafael Marcano for Clearwater. The most recent # one draft picks ( Mick Abel & Andrew Painter ) make their season debuts on Saturday respectively for the Blue Claws and Threshers.
There are 13 players on the big club’s opening day roster ( Nola, Suarez, Eflin, Falter, Sanchez, Brogdon, Dominguez, Jones, Hoskins, Bohm, Stott, Vierling and Muzziotti ) that spent significant time in their minor league development within the Phillies organization. As one who is an ongoing advocate, writer and fan of Phillies player development that’s something I am proud of for both the players and the player development personnel - past and present. I haven’t researched it yet ( but I will 🥴 ) but I would think that having 46 % of the opening day roster would be in the upper half of the 30 organizations. That’s a good thing right 😁.
When Spring Training concluded the backfields here in Clearwater that were so pumped with energy instead have come to a calming still. That’s not to say there’s no baseball activity here - sometimes a staff ace stays back a day to get his last work of the spring in on an early morning as was the case yesterday. There will be more games played on Ashburn and Roberts fields - this coming week Extended Spring Training contests will likely commence for those players yet to be assigned to a roster as well as those working their way back from injuries. We will be there to support and observe - that’s what we do. 😎
So the 2022 baseball season begins - one that hopefully contains many wins and the breaking of the playoff drought. For me it’s also the daily and nightly advent of observing our minor leaguers in action as they continue their development. It’s an interaction of joy and an eagerness of anticipation of good things to come watching the baseball life. It’s Opening Day ! Let the games begin.
Happy Day, Happy Baseball ⚾️
photo today from one of the real writers that I took from Twitter 😎
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