Cubs: I think we all needed to see spring training games again

We are one week into spring training and despite all the quirkiness of the 2021 rules it’s great to see the Chicago Cubs and other boys of summer back on the field.

Yeah, sure, it’s only spring training.  The scores, batting averages, ERAs and all that regular season analysis matter little.  But after a completely awful 2020, it augers well for 2021to be back to some semblance of normal.

The dead period between the end of the NFL season and the Super Bowl and the start of the MLB season is long and cold enough.  Sorry, but basketball and hockey just don’t cut it.  As Jimmy Buffett sang  in Boat Drinks, “20 degrees and the hockey game’s on,  Nobody cares, they are way too far gone…”

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Baseball was way too far gone in 2020

The 60-game season, with all the back-and-forth between MLB, the owners and the MLBPA about safety protocols, new rules and playoff expansion that preceded the season got tired very quickly. Just like that, almost as soon as the season started, it was over.  That’s a strange feeling for long-time baseball fans.

Chicago avoided losing time on the field because of COVID-19, something no other MLB team can say – a testament to both the players and the organization.

Cubs: I’m going to savor every inning

As it stands right now, according to the latest from MLB, we’re still on track for the full 162-game season, with teams still figuring how to deal with limiting attendance for the early part of the season.

There has some tension between MLB and the MLBPA around expanded playoffs and rosters but this is nothing like the public argument that went on during the run-up to last season.

Baseball has serious issues looming, not the least of which is the expiring Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).  There is no telling what the lack of a renewed CBA would mean for baseball in 2022. So while some have complained about the lengthy 162-game season, after 2020 I intend to savor every inning in 2021.