Hello, everybody! Ah, victory! Mother McRee—hide the children! They shouldn’t see such a beating. Sometime around the sixth inning, I clearly heard Howard Cosell yelling, “Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb, for the love of God, please go down!” A team record for runs on opening day; eclipsing the 15 we (yeah, I’m gonna say ‘we’, what of it?) hung on the Mets in 2003. Yesterday was sweet, even though I could quibble about a couple of decisions. I was skeptical of going for the two-point conversion after both touchdowns, but you gotta make hay while the sun shines. The D-Backs narrowly escaped the ten run rule, while the Cubs were busy knocking balls to every corner. Walker even got a hit by smacking one off the first base bag. When things are going your way…let’s hope the Cub bats stay lively tonight.

Finally! After a long, cold dreary winter, baseball is back! So, the Cubs open in Arizona instead of the Friendly Confines. I can deal. Spring training is over, and today the battle begins. I never pay that much attention to spring training anyway. Breaking balls don't break in the Arizona air (a portent for today); pitchers will work on one or two pitches rather than bring their entire arsenal to bear; balls fly farther; hitters face pitchers who'll be optioned to the minors soon--there's not much in the way of real indicators. I just watch to make sure they don't get hurt(sorry, Borowski. ouch!) Starting today, it counts.

What to watch for, this early in the season? Real indicators.

--Creating Runs as Baker likes to put it. Manufacturing runs, for the rest of us. Small ball. Hitting behind the runner, instead of everybody standing around waiting for the three-run jack. You know, the things we get promised every year that "this year's club" will work on.

Why add my voice to the large number of Cub blogs? Good question. A big reason involves that sense of community a Cub fan feels, that desire to be an active citizen in CubNation. After reading so many of the blogs here, I naturally wanted to weigh in and share my opinions with the rest of you. I understand there's no guarantee anybody will read any of this, but it feels good to take a seat, sip a cold one, and get in on the discussion.

I've always enjoyed going to the ballpark and finding myself caught up in conversations or arguments with perfect strangers. That to me is part of the fun of being there, the interaction with fellow fans of whatever stripe. Some question every move, wondering "what are they thinking?". Others rabidly back every thing their beloved team does, even down to drinking the kool-aid. I'm somewhere in between.