Happiness Is ...

Baseball has begun.

The initial pitch thrown, the first runs scored, the last out made. Three home runs for Chicago in the opening game, matched by 3 errors on Cleveland’s side of the diamond. Possibly the first regular-season visit to the DL, after CC Sabathia strained an abdominal in the third inning. Maybe his skewed hat threw off his balance.

Side note: raise your hand if you thought CC Sabathia even HAD abdominals to strain. Seriously, anyone?

The first game is in the books. Defending Champs White Sox 10, Rebuilding Indians 4. A good offensive start paired with a shakey defensive outing for the once-solid Indains. Remember their infield back in the day? Deadly double-play combo Carlos Baerga and Omar Vizquel up the middle? Sandy Alomar Jr. behind the plate? Even speedster Kenny Lofton patrolling center field? They ain’t in Kansas anymore, Toto.

Thome, facing his former team of 12 years, launched a two-run shot in the fourth, and received his first curtain-call in a White Sox uni. That shot tied him on the all-time homer run list with Oriole great (hack) Cal Ripken.

Though I’m pretty ambivalent about Thome, mostly a mere admirer of his quick crushing swings, its nice to see him move up such a prestigious list. Well, actually, I’m happier that he tied, and will eventually pass, Mr. Ripken. Love to see Cal’s name move DOWN on the record lists, hoo boy!

But today at 2:00 EST, my life will once again have meaning. In Texas, Coco Crisp, the Sox new center fielder, will see the first pitch of Boston’s 2006 season. Its magical. My first season living in Boston, being a local to the team I’ve followed my entire life, Fenway a short ride down the road. Can you feel it? I can.

The Gates of Heaven itself won’t open until next week when the Sox return to Boston for their home opener on the 11th, but the fans will still be there in Texas to cheer on their team. The Red Sox Nation is global and daunting; there are games when visiting Sox fans outnumber those for the home team. It’s a beautiful thing to see away games on TV and hear nothing but, “Let’s Go Red Sox!”

They may not have won the World Series last year, but no one in this town, in this fanbase, has forgotten the magic of 2004. Sure, we’re down to a mere handful, if that, of players remaining from the championship squad, but the name on the front of everyone’s jersey is the same. New faces, new personalities. New things to love about a team, new things to be concerned about. A new season starts today.

Curt Schilling will take the mound for the season opener today, already a better start than he had last year. We’ll get our first look at one of our staff aces, and maybe get a good sense as to if he’s returned to his 2004 form, or if we’ll be languishing in another 2005 debacle.

Lots of questions about the rest of the pitching staff, too. Are we going to miss our not-so-young-anymore phenom Arroyo? Will Paplebon be a beast out of the pen? Can Tavarez keep his cool long enough to throw a pitch? Will Becket be the new future of the pitching staff? Will Boomer get the boot? Is Clement’s new facial hair the answer to his post-All-Star-break woes?

We’ll get to see how the revamped lineup will perform this season. Will Crisp help us forget how Jesus abandoned the city for our most hated rivals? Can the flashy defense of Alex Gonzalez make us overlook his .245 career batting average? Will Mark Loretta stay healthy enough to keep Alex Cora off the field as much as possible? Can Mike Lowell play younger than he looks throughout the season? And for God’s sake, will Manny continue to be Manny and learn to once again love the city of Boston?

And the most important issue to examine today: Team Chemistry. No other team has sold fans on the importance of Chemistry more than the Sox and their band of Idiots the past few seasons. Now those Idiots are all but gone and forgotten, and a new crew is donning the Boston jerseys. This squad needs to find their common ground, that niche, that brings this team together in baseball harmony.

Today is our first look. In just a few hours, we’re underway.

And I’m stuck at work. Dammit.

The Terps are in the Finals! UMD basketball made it through the final four, beating #1 seed UNC to reach the final game against division rival Duke. These two teams finished 1-3 in the ACC this year, so its sure to be a hard-fought game between bitter enemies.

Unfortunately, I’m not talking about the Men’s squad. This year, the basketball accolades lie firmly with the Lady Terps and their amazing season. In only her fourth season with the team, coach Brenda Frese has led the Terps to a record of 33-4, more wins than any Men’s or Women’s team in school history.

And tomorrow night, they’ll take the court here in Boston to try to claim their first NCAA National Championship ever. Though I won’t be in attendance, I definitely will be rooting them on. Hell, I might even tune in for a few plays. I just won’t tell anyone I did.

Go Terps!