Spring Training

"When does baseball season start? my wife Cecilia asked.

"Next Monday, april 6," I replied.

"How are the Dodgers this year?"

"They need more pitching. They need a fifth starter.

Cecilia looked blank.

"A fifth starting pitcher," I said.

"Five starting pitchers seems like a lot," Cecilia said.

"Teams play five, six, sometimes seven games a week," I told her. "Current thinking is that a starting pitcher needs four days off between starts."

"I know you listen to baseball everyday during the season...."

I do. Living in Southern California, I can hear the Dodgers, Angels, Padres and sometimes the Giants on the radio, and of course I can hear every game on MLB.com.

"Was it always like that?" Cecilia asked. "Five starting pitchers on a team?"

"No." Spahn and Sain and pray for rain, I thought. "Most teams had two or three good starting pitchers and did the best they could the other days. But that was the old days. Now there are twice as many teams, the season is eight games longer and they have two series of playoffs before the World Series.

Cecilia said "So if there's twice as many teams and more games – are there enough good pitchers to go around?"

"No," I told her. "Each team needs five starters. Plus, you have to assume or at least allow for the possibility that one of your starters is going to get hurt for at least a few weeks during the season. So you need to have someone available, either in the bullpen or in the minor leagues, who can step up. Between the major league team and the AAA minor league team, you need six or seven pitchers who can start major league games."

"So that means...."

"Baseball needs 224 major league-quality starting pitchers each season. Or more."

"Two hundred and twenty-four boys who can throw fastballs...."

I smiled. "And curves and sliders and slurves and split-fingers and change-ups and knuckleballs and anything else that will get by a good hitter or make him hit it foul or hit it right into a fielder's glove."

"Oh," Cecilia said.

"And the boy has to be able to field his position: catch a line drive coming right back at him, stop a hot grounder up the middle, charge in for a bunt in front of home plate, back up a throw in from the outfield, cover first base when the first baseman gets pulled off."

"Oh."

I put my hands up, palms facing my wife. "I'm sorry," I said. "Too much information."

Cecilia smiled. "It's okay, Charley," she said. "I enjoy seeing you get enthusiastic about baseball. Maybe you should write a blog."

So maybe I will. Haha!

But it won't be just a baseball blog. It'll be a life blog. Cooking (recipes and experiences), music, romance (ha!), stamps, travel and opinion.

All told for our own entertainment, Cecilia.

Cecilia giggled when I told her that.

"Charley," she said. She grinned at me and flashed her pretty eyes. I grinned back at her.

And for your entertainment too.