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Spring is a wonderful time of year. Despite T.S. Eliot’s line that “April is the cruelest month,” spring is a time of renewal, a good time to remind ourselves to open up to new facets of life. One of the best things about spring, to me, is the opening of the baseball season. I am a fervent baseball fan. To me, there is a good deal of metaphysics in baseball. You start out at a place called home, then you go on a little journey like the Prodigal Son, the aim being to return home. The ones who go home...

Joe Biden will not be throwing out the Opening Day first pitch when the Washington Nationals face the New York Mets, the Washington Post reports.

Sportswriter: “You hit only two home runs all last year and already you’ve hit seven this year [1969]. What’s the difference?” Reds outfielder Alex Johnson: “Five.” See? Baseball numbers aren’t difficult. But be precise: As players say after a close play, “Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.” And don’t be discouraged if some questions stump you. As Phillies manager Danny Ozark said in 1976, “Even Napoleon had his Watergate.” And as Brewers manager Harvey Kuenn said after losing the 1982 World Series to the Cardinals, “We’re going to hang our heads high.” Now, name the player or players...

We need this. Need it? Around New York, when it became apparent the chill wasn’t going to abandon our bones one second earlier than required, we’ve been circling this date, pining for it, counting down toward it, from the moments last autumn when baseball expired, abandoning us at the most inopportune time. That was the most timeless thing Bart Giamatti was talking about all those years ago, after all, when he wrote about how baseball is built to break your heart. That’s the part that still reaches into your soul for a squeeze every year: “As soon as the chill...

MILWAUKEE -- Buster Posey is going with multi-dimensional. For Brandon Crawford, it's depth. Joe Panik chooses balance. For Hunter Pence, it's all about the collective. "A bunch of grinders," said Denard Span. "Relentlessness, maybe?" said Matt Duffy, raising an eyebrow. And what word would Brandon Belt select to summarize the character and potential of the Giants offense this season? "Aw, honestly," Belt said. "I just can't wait to see how many runs we can put up." It was the talk of the spring: How deep, balanced and potent can this Giants offense be this season? There were more smiles in...

And so it begins!

Could nobody get this guy (the freakin' president) a hat that has shape to it?!? It looks like they pulled that hat out of a dumpster after someone sat on it...

Today is baseball's Opening Day. It's when the nation takes notice that once again, all things are possible, everything begins anew, past failures are but faint memories, and the future is bright and full of hope. This season, perhaps more than most seasons of recent memory, our home teams have reason to look ahead not only with great enthusiasm but also with justifiable optimism. (complete with slide show of presidents throwing out first pitches) ...

For baseball’s Opening Day we offer fans an opportunity to tell us which president most resembled Cy Young, and which least looked like a ballplayer. Complete with slide show. =-=-= BEST presidential pitching form goes to...

Opening Day will have to wait a day. The Red Sox called off today’s opener due to the forecast for heavy rain throughout the day. The game against the Tampa Bay Rays will be played tomorrow at 4:05 p.m., with all of the planned festivities intact. Tickets for today’s game will be good for tomorrow and gates will open at 2:05 p.m. “After consulting with our weather service and other professional meteorologists, it became apparent it would be extremely unlikely, if not impossible, that we could get a complete game in today so the decision was made to postpone until...

CHICAGO (CBS) ― The Chicago White Sox announced Sunday evening it has canceled Monday's season opener against the Kansas City Royals because of inclement weather. The White Sox postponed Monday's 1:05 p.m. game because of forecasted snow, cold and high winds, according to a release from the team. The game is rescheduled for 1:05 p.m. Tuesday. All opening day festivities will still take place Tuesday, the release said. One can see why the event was cancelled. It's really coming down at U.S. Cellular Field Sunday night. And the gloomy, cold weather is dampening the spirits of a lot of White...

PRESIDENTIAL NEWS OF THE DAY: President and Mrs. Bush hosted Opening Day of the White House Tee Ball season. General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was today's Tee Ball Commissioner. Following is a transcript of the President's Remarks to open the season: THE PRESIDENT: Seth, thank you very much. Good job. Welcome to the South Lawn. Laura and I are thrilled you're here for opening day. It is an honor for me, and the Commissioner, General Pete Pace, to welcome you all here for what is going to be an exciting ball game between the Yankees...

SARASOTA, Fla. -- President George W. Bush is scheduled to throw out a ceremonial first pitch for the Reds on Opening Day at Great American Ball Park. "We're proud to announce that the president will join us for the start of this new beginning for Cincinnati Reds baseball," Reds chief executive officer Bob Castellini said in a statement. Cincinnati opens its 2006 season hosting the Chicago Cubs on April 3 at 2:10 p.m. CT.

As they get closer to their season opener in Japan, the Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners are jittery. They're not the only ones - with war possible, major league baseball is wondering whether now's the time to play ball so far from home. There were no plans Monday for the teams to call off their trip to Tokyo. The A's and Mariners are supposed to leave in a couple of days and scheduled to play a two-game series beginning March 25. But commissioner Bud Selig and baseball officials were busy talking to the State Department, the FBI and other government...

Cheney to toss first pitch at Rangers' home opener 04/03/2002 By G. ROBERT HILLMAN / Washington Bureau of The Dallas Morning News WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney will throw out the first ball Friday afternoon at the Rangers' home opener against the Anaheim Angels, the White House said Friday. The game starts at 2:05 p.m. Mr. Cheney, who is on a cross-country political fund-raising tour, will head directly to The Ballpark in Arlington and plans no other appearances in the area, spokeswoman Cathy Martin said. President Bush, a former managing partner of the baseball club, also will be...

Changes came everywhere, from the general manager's office to the owner's box, from the clubhouse to the manager's post. Now, going on 84 years without a World Series championship, the Red Sox are still faced with the task of changing something else. History. Six months removed from a 2001 season characterized by dysfunction and disarray, the Sox today are scheduled to open the 2002 campaign against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park. Since their last appearance in Boston, the Red Sox have been sold, stripped and largely rebuilt, the ill will of last season junked as if it were...