The Sports Monitor

Opening day used to be a holiday for me. I had quite a stretch of going to opening day games in Pittsburgh. In a 25-year stretch, I believe it was 24 opening days. The one I missed, I was living in Indiana and couldn't make the seven-hour drive to the opener. That's changed; I have a new streak going. I've missed three straight openers. And it looks like I didn't miss much Monday. It's just one game, but opening day gets all the attention. And that attention wasn't too good. The Bucs had their best pitcher, A.J. Burnett on the mound and they lost to the lowly Cubs. Jeff Samardzija improved his career ERA to 4.01 after his eight shutout innings. Go Bucs. Am I a bad fan? I think not. Is it a boycott? I don't think so, although some might interpret it that way. I just choose not to give Bob Nutting any of my money. Nutting is all about the money. I'll chose to do the same. I'll keep my hard-earned dollars and spend it somewhere e...

It's getting easier and easier for me to miss opening day. This is my third straight season of missing opening day for the Pirates, and the Bucs are making it simple for me to extend my streak. It used to be a given for me to get a ticket to go to PNC Park in early April. Now, with ownership being frugal, I watch it on television. Until the Nuttings put money into the team to make it competitive, why should I put money into the Nuttings' pockets? It's everyone else's choice, and I've made mine. I'd rather drive to Erie or Altoona to see a minor league game than endorse the way the Nuttings run their business.

Spring is supposed to be the time of year where baseball fans -- actually, all baseball fans -- should have some optimism for their teams. In the past, no matter what the Pittsburgh Pirates have looked like, I've tried to go with that approach. That includes the Grapefruit League seasons when Derek Bell was on the roster as well. I can't drum up much optimism for the Bucs this season. I posted earlier this year when Pirates tickets went on sale. I didn't buy any on that first day. I still haven't purchased any tickets. That's probably not a big deal for many people. For me, it's something. For more than 20 years, I've been going to Opening Day at Three Rivers or PNC Park. It would have been a consecutive-years streak but I lived out of state for two years. But the point is, the streak looks like it will end. Will I watch them on TV? Sure. Will I go to a game this season? I'd like to think I will. But, honestly, I'm not so sure. ...

Opening Day of the baseball season is a time for unbridled optimism. We're talking the Tampa Bay Rays can make it to the World Series kind of optimism. Yeah, it can happen. It did last year, in case you forgot. That's what makes Opening Day so special. That's why Pirates fans can think positively and hope for the best when no one is giving them a chance to have a winning record, let alone be a part of a pennant race. So, with a caveat of anything can happen and the new season brings a clean slate, let's set aside any preconceptions and a look at why the Pirates could shock everybody this year and make the playoffs. First, the past few years a team has come out of nowhere to make the postseason. There are the Rays from last year, the Rockies from two years ago, the Tigers before that and the White Sox were unexpected champs in 2005. So, why not the Pirates? Paul Maholm could be the ace the team has been looking for. His trends are going in the positive direction and he d...