Ahhhh, I woke up this morning to see the sun shining, the air smelled a little better and the birds were singing a beautiful lil' diddy! Why the joy you ask? Well, it's "officially" opening day of the 2008 Major League Baseball Season. I know, I know - we've already had two games, but when you have to wake up before the roosters just to watch the games, well, that's not "really" opening day. So tonight we usher in a new season, a new park, a new era (post-Mitchell report) and a bunch of optimism.

This is the time of the year that every team has a chance, and every team is still in the hunt - EVEN the Royals...well, ok, maybe NOT the Royals, but even they have hope as they look at the fresh new faces on their team and see a bright light at the end of the tunnel.

Every fan is giddy about their teams' chances, and they feel like THIS could be their year. As I look at the landscape of the game, I see a lot of close races (the NL West looks to me like the division that's going to be the tightest) and I see hope. I see a league that has been under a lot of scrutiny, that has seen a lot of bad press as of late, but more importantly, I see a league that has so many fresh new faces that will brighten up the game. Guys like Ryan Braun, Justin Verlander, Miguel Cabrera, Aaron Hill, Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, guys like that who the league really needs to market and shine a light on. These guys are stars in the making, if they're not already.

With the Mitchell report casting a doubt on the sport, it's time to lace'em up and start playing, to start focusing on something other then that report, to start focusing on the game itself, the purity, the love that it's fans so admire. If you're like me, Moncayo, Les, you've already done your research, you've done your fantasy draft(s) and you've got a good idea as to who you're really banking on for the year.

This is always one of my favorite days, cause as a fan, I'm just eager to get the game that I love back, to start cheering for my team. Did your team make any moves (I'm from Detroit, so of course I'll be EAGERLY watching to see if the moves "we" made are going to payoff)? Did your team call up any young studs that you've been reading about in Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus...? Are you disappointed your team didn't go after that lefty ace (IE: Toronto - Bedard) that could put them over the top? As I mentioned, this is when every team still is in the chase, so let's get the games going and watch the boys of summer do what they do so well!

Some predictions from me:

AL East - Yankees
AL Central - Tigers
AL West - Angels
AL Wild Card - Cleveland (I chose Cleveland, only because of the question marks around Bostons' staff, and the number of games they've logged last year and the trip to Japan this year)

NL East - Mets (tough choice, I want to say Atlanta, I just think NY will be out for revenge after their collapse last year)
NL Central - Cubs
NL West - Colorado
NL Wild Card - Atlanta

Going to the W.S. this year will be (drum roll please) Cubs vs. Tigers

AL Cy Young - Verlander          NL Cy Young - Cole Hamels
AL MVP - Miguel Cabrera         NL MVP - Mark Texeira
AL Rookie - Jacoby Ellsbury     NL Rookie - Fukodome
AL Comeback - Liriano             NL Comeback - Kerry Wood

What do you think....