So for all of you faithful readers (a number I hope is growing, be it ever so gradually), I just got back from a nice week's vacation in Phoenix, AZ. As Borat would say, it was "Very nice, very nice."
While I was there, I got to catch a couple of spring training games: the Rangers and Mariners in Surprise, AZ, and the Mariners vs. the Giants in Peoria, AZ. Our seats were five rows back and almost directly behind home plate for the second game, which was awesome since I'm a huge Giants fans. Thanks, Uncle Steve, for the tickets!
A couple of brief observations about the teams we watched, a thought or two about spring training in general, and then we're done.
* The Mariners, Rangers, and Giants are all in for a long season, I'm afraid. We watched Miguel Batista and Horacio Ramirez pitch for the M's, and if it wasn't for the fact that the Mariners signed one as a FA and traded for the other, I'd say that neither should make the team. The Rangers, as usual, will hit the crap out of the ball but still manage to lose most games 8-7. And the Giants, as much as I love them, are just plain old. I'm ready for a youth movement.
* As for the spring training experience itself, what a blast. The stadiums are small, kind of like minor league parks, only nicer. The players are relaxed and seem to be enjoying themselves, and the level of baseball is pretty good. That is, until #98 comes in to pitch for the Mariners and serves up a couple of the longest home runs I've ever seen.
* Finally, I had to wonder: in the long run, how good is spring training for the every day players, especially the older ones? I know they have a lot of offseason pizza and beer to work off as they gear up for the season, but a 30-game preseason schedule followed by a 162-game schedule? If I had to cut out one of the two, though, I'd say MLB should drop the regular season down to about 150 games and sprinkle in a few more off days here and there.
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