MLB reports:  Going into day-two of the MLB opening day schedule, I will be in Toronto tonight to watch the hometown Blue Jays face the Minnesota Twins.  With a sold-out, packed stadium of over 50,000 screaming fans, tonight will be awesome.  Opening day is the greatest baseball day of the year and should never be missed.  I have attended all-star games and World Baseball Classic matchups and I can still say that opening day is number one.  I have not yet attended any world series games, which has its own energy and excitement..  But the start of the year, the start of the season, with hope and optimism all around- opening day is king.

With hope comes reality.  Opening day, while a great deal of fun to watch, should still be prepared for ahead of time.  For those experienced fans who have been through this before but need a refresher after a long offseason and for those new to the game, I have prepared the following tips for you.  Opening day is most enjoyable when you come to the game ready.  Here is what you need to do in order to enjoy the experience to the fullest.

1)  Pack food and water:  Check the policy of your stadium on this, but most will allow you to bring in any food and a sealed bottled of water.  Opening day gets pretty hectic, as the stadium will be full and the concessions are not yet in mid-season form.  To avoid missing any of the action in long lineups, plan ahead and bring your own munchies. 

2)  Wear baseball gear:  Coming to opening day without a baseball top/cap is unacceptable.  Preferably you should wear the colors of your home team, but any baseball clothing will do.  To get into the excitement, you have to dress the part.

3)  Bring a camera:  Opening day will last three to four hours, but pictures last a lifetime.  Be sure to capture all the moments of the game and your surroundings.  The more friends an family that you have at the game, the better the photo opportunities.

4)  Bring people:  Coming to the game with a buddy or loved one is great.  But the more people that join you in your section, the greater the feeling you will have at the game.  I have seven people in total in my group coming today, it will be a blast.

5)  Strategic bathroom breaks:  Try to go right before the game starts.  The bathrooms will be crowded all game long and hopefully your bladder can hold up for most, if not the entire game.

6)  Arrive early:  On a Friday, traffic is usually bad no matter where we live.  Add to that the number of people attending the game, the slow pace of the ushers in welcoming people, checking tickets and giving away free stuff- and you have a recipe for disaster.  Try to be at your stadium approximately two hours before game time to make sure that you can easily get in, check out the concessions and all the pre-game festivities in a relaxed manner.

7)  Bring your Smartphone:  If you have a blackberry or iphone, sending the occasional updates through twitter or facebook will make you leading edge and gives the people that follow you a chance to share in your experience.  Photo updates get bonus points.

8)  Get into the game:  Socializing throughout the game is fun.  But if you are at the point that you have no idea what inning it is and the score, clearly you are not paying enough attention.  Keep focused so that you miss any of the key game highlights and bring the game into your discussion.  The greater experience you have on opening day, the more likely you will be out for future games this season.

9)  Watch the lineup:  Your home team likely has some new faces.  Learn the roster and get to know the players on your team.  You will see them for 162 games this year and watching them live to start the year will help your knowledge.  I look for things like batting stances, pitching deliveries, names/numbers etc.  Learn your team as the better you know your guys, the harder you will support them.

10)  Savor the moment:  Enjoy every second that you are there.  Take in every sight, sound and smell from opening day from the second you enter the stadium to the time you leave.  You will only get one crack at opening day every season, enjoy this one. 

I wish everyone a great MLB opening day!  Hopefully you will get to attend a game in person over the course of the last two days.  If not, try to make sure that you are enjoying an opening day game, if it is on your computer, television or radio.  Then try to make the effort to get to a game as soon as you can to get into the spirit of the start of the MLB season.  Plan a road trip for the summer to watch some games at a park that you have never seen.  But at the end of the day, just enjoy baseball.  It is the greatest game in the world and its back for the next seven months.  It’s truly the best time of year to be a baseball fan.

MLB reports from Opening Day- Thursday March 31^st:

1)      Some shaky closers to start the year as Axford imploded as the Brewers lost to the Reds, Broxton and Franklin both gave up long balls in their initial outings and Rodney got the save in a high WHIP fashion.  Remember, there will be new closers on 30-40% of teams by the end of the year.  Closer is the most volatile position in baseball.

2)      Alex Gordon, batting third for the Royals, went 0-5 with 3 SO.  My preseason pick to have a strong bounce back year, I hope that he doesn’t fail me.

3)      Checking my predictions for the opening day schedule, I finished with a 5-1 record yesterday.  The only game I missed on was the Cardinals and Padres game.  Little did I know that Pujols would ground into three double plays.  It was just one of those games.  We shall see how I do on the rest of my predictions later today.  You can view my opening day matchups and predictions on http://mlbreports.com posted on Tuesday.

4)      The Dodgers/Giants game proved to be a pitching matchup for the ages.  Kershaw and Lincecum went head-to-head and did not disappoint.  Key moment of the game occurred when the Dodgers had a 1-0 lead in the 6^th with the bases loaded and two outs.  Mattingly decided to let Kershaw bat for himself.  In a tight game with little offensive opportunities, the Dodger’s manager could have cost himself the game.  In an early game and Kershaw likely to go only one more inning (which he did), you need to play to win.  Hopefully someone can explain the National League to Donny as the season progresses.  Otherwise, Kershaw looks like he is ready to break out into a superstar and Lincecum will be solid yet again.

5)      The Padres are in big trouble.  Now that Adrian Gonzalez is gone, the smoke and mirrors can be removed and the carriage is now back into being a pumpkin.  When Venable is your leadoff hitter and Orlando Hudson is batting third, you know that it will be a long year.  It looked to me like Buddy Black created a lineup by drawing names out of a hat.  With so little talent, maybe he is on to something. 

6)      Jered Weaver looked great to start the year and should be in Cy Young form.  The Angels as a team are yet again the impatient hackers on offense that they always seem to be.  Against a scuffling Luke Hochevar, the Angels stranded 15 men on base and only took one walk as a team.  The Angels will have to rely on their pitching if they hope to contend in the AL West.  Vernon Wells had a typical Vernon night.  Anaheim fans will be calling for his head by June.

7)      Great start by the Braves.  Lowe was spectacular and Heyward is mature beyond his years.  He will be the face of the franchise for the next ten to twelve years if he stays healthy.

8)      Phil Coke, the named fifth starter for the Tigers had a shaky relief outing against the Yankees.  This cannot help his chances to keep a starting role.  Hopefully the Tigers give him a chance to start and show what he can for at least a month.

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