Well, it's the dawn of a new season, and for
me, Bryant Gumbel said it best with:
" The other sports are just sports. Baseball is a love."
With this and every other season come a strange mixture of hope,
excitement, and anxiousness to see what the season brings. Two years
removed from a mostly forgettable 1-17 season, the 2008 Padres look
to build on last year's successes, having gone 7-11 and narrowly
missing out on the last playoff spot. Improving at two key positions,
the Padres have added veteran backstop Louie Bruno from the 35+
Giants and fireballer Kevin Kennedy from the AL A's. Both players
will undoubtedly add depth to a team already standing on the precipice
of a crossroads for this team.
The 2007 Padres were
already a good team, with these additions, the 2008
team has the potential to be great. The Pads have offense, scoring
almost 8 runs a game last year, leading the league in stolen bases
with the 3rd and 9th best hitters in the league in Dave
Giugni and Andy Wagoner,
pitching, with staff anchors Kennedy and Marion
combining for a 12-4 record and a 3.37 ERA in their last full seasons
and finally, defense, with speed to burn in the outfield, vaccuums
at every position in the infield, and a gun behind the plate.
As the old saying goes "Hope Springs Eternal",
which basically equates to the fact that every team is in first
place at the start of the season, the trick is to stay there. Remember,
it's a round ball and a round bat and all you've got to do is hit
the ball square.
