Hope Springs Eternal, and Spring is Eternally Hopeful

We've heard it before. . .The wonderful thing about Spring Training is that there's a 30-way tie for first place. Last year is over. In the here and now, everyone has the potential to go home a winner. Don't get me wrong: I think optimism is an undervalued virtue, but some teams need a wake-up call.

Is the water extra salty in Florida this year? 'Cause Jayson Stark is acting especially loopy. Billy Wagner may be the best thing to happen to the Phillies since the return of Phanatic's head. He's probably going to have a great season, and he'll probably help pave the way to a Phillies turnaround. Still, he's only human, and he can only save leads that are handed to him. Ask John Smoltz how it feels to follow a Roberto Hernandez 8th inning special. Or, wait a couple of months and ask Billy Wagner.

The season may not have started yet, but the presses are hot. Hype follows type, and Baseball Widow feels compelled to remind her readers that the stories that are getting ink aren't really the stories. The real stories are in the day to day activity of early spring; setting a fifth starter, gelling the rotation. . .these are the events that will shape the season over the long haul. The hopes of the season live and die on the shoulders of guys who will probably never get a column inch. Baseball is about depth and longevity. Stars grab headlines, but teams win championships. Good baseball is, in fact, pretty much the opposite of what we've come to expect from the media.

Here's to a hopeful spring. . .