Need a positive outlook? If eight ounces in a pint glass aren’t handy, don’t despair. You’re in luck this time of year.
Just track down a Major League Baseball player during spring training.
Come spring, the boys of summer look at the world through rose-colored Oakleys. Everybody’s healthy. No team has a losing record. And nobody can help but think that — hey, if we catch some breaks, if we win those one-run games, and with the good Lord willin’ — there’s a shot at winning the division.
Peering up to find silver linings are your . From last place in last year’s NL West, there’s no other way to look.
Nonetheless, Rockies pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report today for spring-training duty in Tucson. And already, as Denver Post staff writers Troy E. Renck and Patrick Saunders reported yesterday, .
Never you mind that the Rockies have posted a losing record the last five years.
For the past four of those five years, Renck has posted vignettes and tidbits from the Rockies’ spring-training headquarters in Tucson in a series dubbed Postcards From Spring Training. This year, that online-exclusive series has devolved — in name only.
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SPEND TIME IN THE BLOGHOUSE
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Lending Renck and Saunders more flexibility while also affording the series more immediacy, DenverPost.com will launch Posts From Spring Training next week. This blog will not only record the optimism and goings-on from camp as Saunders enters his first full year on the Rockies beat, but also from the Cactus and Grapefruit leagues as Renck roams various camps until opening day.
New this year, too, is room for readers to post their views of spring training. Registration? Can of corn.
Speaking of blogs, a team of Post staffers has been compiling a series of compelling entries from the Winter Olympics. Since the opening ceremony last Friday, the series has shared colorful anecdotes ranging in topics from the of American sports writers to a good old-fashioned .
Another Olympics-related blog new to DenverPost.com comes from Bridie Farrell, a former member of the U.S. national short-track speedskating squad. Farrell just missed qualifying for the Olympic team. Take in Turin from her unique perspective in , which appears on , along with a medal count, schedule and other interactives to round out The Post’s complete coverage.
Of course, if football is the only sport you wish to know, DenverPost.com’s is at your disposal. Denver Post staff columnist Jim Armstrong christened the Broncos blog with live reports during the AFC championship game, and the blog remains active during the offseason.
After all, optimism dictates that the 2006 NFL Draft is a mere 71 days away.
An online exclusive that runs each Friday, examines the memorable, less visible and lighthearted aspects of Colorado’s sports landscape. DenverPost.com sports producer Bryan Boyle can be reached at bboyle@denverpost.com.
From the columns
“His name always sounded like a cartoon character. And now Bode Miller is one. A goofball on skis. He has become the SpongeBob SquarePants of the Winter Olympics. Treat everything as a prank — your sport, your image, your team — and pretty soon it’s your life that’s the joke.”
From the mailbags
“Yes, injured players who were part of the original Olympic roster get medals. It’s that simple. Vaananen will get a medal if the Finns win a gold – and they are my sleeper pick to win one.”
From the message boards
“Wasn’t that awesome how the Red Wings fans just took over Colorado’s arena yesterday? The ‘Let’s Go Red Wings!’ chant was very loud and clear — gotta love it!”
— Cowboy Killa
From the online exclusives
The Winter Olympics are well under way in Turin, Italy. Track the progress of medal-winning countries by clicking on the Turin Games image. Not only does the medal-count chart record gold, silver and bronzes medals, but it also links to each country’s profile. These profiles list individual medal winners as well as player files. Player files include bios and career highlights, as well as event results.
A look back
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| Post / John Leyba |
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In this photo shot Feb. 20, 1998, former Rockies outfielder and Blake Street Bomber Dante Bichette stretches during a spring-training workout at Hi Corbett Field in Tucson. On June 10 of that year, Bichette became the first Rockies player to hit for the cycle. |
