Spring is in the air...(aside from COVID)

Spring training is finally here! At long last there is some form of baseball that has return to my stressful and already tiresome life. While I am happy and elated that my favorite sport is back, for some reason my level of excitement is not the same as in previous years.

Could it be that I've been a depressed Yankee fan for the last several seasons (12 to be exact)? Could it be that I'm tired of constantly being excited at the start of the season only to go on an emotional roller coaster for the next eight months only to have my hopes crushed before my very eyes once again? Or is it the fact that I have other things to worry about and I can't believe I'm saying this... but baseball is taking a back seat to other things right now.

Maybe because we're still dealing with a pandemic and I can't fully appreciate and enjoy the game with my friends like in the previous years. Whatever the reason is, there's just something that feels off and I don't know why. While I am feel different towards baseball this year, my love and appreciation for the game hasn't changed and I fully intend to follow my favorite team, the New York Yankees (go ahead Alan, I'm ready for you to call me out on it) and hope that this is the year they win their 28th World Series Championship.

Even if they don't (but I really hope they do), I will appreciate every chance I get to watch them, because if I learned anything from the pandemic, it's that we take sports for granted and some of us don't appreciate it until it's gone. Last year was a perfect example of when all professional sports shutdown for months. The emptiness of not having any sports to watch really felt as though something was missing in my life. That being said, I look forward to the day when I can return to a baseball stadium, grab a beer and a hot dog and just enjoy a game with my friends. Until then, I'll settle for Zoom calls and watching it together through the safety and comfort of our homes.