The Baseball Highlight of My Spring Break

Truthfully, the highlights of my spring break all involve time spent with family. But the highlight of the baseball side of things has to be the procurement of Rocco Baldelli's St. Patrick's Day baseball cap.

Shortly before game time, while waiting for autograph opportunities (none whatsoever this year) and watching the players stretch and relax on the field, Sox outfielder Baldelli walked toward the third base box seats, pulled off his cap, and threw it into the crowd. Coming right toward me, I reached up my left arm and hauled it in. There is no great story here. I simply caught the hat with no fanfare whatsoever. It was a cool moment.

The surprising moment came when I examined the hat. The hat was ripped badly in the back and had been cut on the inside. No wonder Baldelli did not want the hat anymore. He was the cleanup hitter in Boston's lineup that day, and had a great new cap the next time I saw him in right field. Baldelli went on to have a horrendous game at the plate.

What makes this interesting is that Baldelli grew up about five miles from my home, but this won't make it any easier to get him to autograph the hat.

What I Did on My Spring Break

The annual pilgrimage to beautiful City of Palms Park in Fort Myers, spring home of the Boston Red Sox, was a resounding success. Not only was the weather outstanding and the seats terrific, but the Red Sox won a nice game against the Twins.

The game began with an exciting matchup of Scott Baker and Josh Beckett. I was left being impressed by some powerful Boston bats. Jason Varitek, David Ortiz, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Jason Bay all homered to put the game out of reach. In case you're wondering, it was the St. Patrick's Day game, and the crowd was a sea of green that matched the bases and the writing on the home team's jerseys.

Photos: The starting lineups of the Twins and Red Sox on Tuesday, March 17; NESN reporter Heidi Watney; Sox Mascot Wally the Green Monster; and Sox ace Josh Beckett pitching in the second inning.

Lamenting the World Baseball Classic

I really do hate to be a poor loser, and it's really not about that at all. I'm a baseball fan, but I can't really warm up to the Classic. Not that it can't be good baseball. Not that it can't be exciting. What bothers me is that it can be so dangerous to major league players and so difficult to manage.

Six major injuries to players on Team USA is probably not even the worst story to come out of the American side of things. So much second guessing is heard about Davey Johnson's managerial decisions; in reality, Johnson may not be as guilty as we might think, upon closer scrutiny. Of course, we can ask why he stayed with Roy Oswalt so long in the final, loser-go-home game? We can even ask a team with two shortstops named Derek Jeter and Jimmy Rollins would choose to start Jeter in such an important game, relegating Rollins to the DH role?

Could any person manage a team of major leaguers under the constant scrutiny of 30 major league clubs? I'm not sure this is possible or even fair to ask.

Rob Dibble, on MLB Home Plate (XM Radio), said that MLB looks silly sponsoring a tournament in which Team USA cannot in two attempts make the final game. Dibble, as always, has a real point. For Team USA, it has to be about winning, but getting the formula just right is proving to be very difficult.

Commissioner Bud Selig will put a positive spin on the entire Classic, and maybe rightfully so for the overall worldwide good of the game. Many MLB players and certainly MLB managers and general managers must curse the entire event.

A Salute But Not a Goodbye to Curt Schilling

Well, we no longer will have Curt Schilling to kick around anymore ... or will we? Would Curt ever go away completely? I sure hope not. What we now have is the beginning of the Schilling Hall of Fame debate. Today is the day that debate officially begins. My call is that he will indeed make the Hall, though probably not on the first ballot.

What makes Schilling a Hall of Famer? We have about 216 career wins (I think, but I'm not looking at his stats) which is impressive, but that's not the best story. Without a doubt, it's his 11-2 postseason record accompanied by a microscopic ERA. Simply put, he was the big-game pitcher of his generation and led two ballclubs to World Championships: the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Boston Red Sox. Heck, his last appearance was winning a game in the 2007 postseason. I see Schill entering the Hall as a Diamondback and delivering a long, elegant, and heartfelt speech.

Hats off and future celebrations for the great Curt Schilling.

Spring Thoughts

Oh, so much has happened since I last blogged, much of it encouraging, some of it frustrating, but all of it fascinating.

First and foremost, the A-Rod saga keeps getting more interesting, and I'm not talking about his ailing hip. Has there ever been a human being -- other than maybe John Wilkes Booth -- who has been so successful at creating a never-ending factory of negativity. Seems like just yesterday that I was snickering about his infamous mirror kiss. Literally, today, I am rolling on the floor laughing at his involvement in New York's famous prostitution ring. Apparently, it's all true, not just because the Daily News says so, but because text messages offer proof.

Second, and relating to the hometown team, many things have occurred that are worth mentioning. We have the Julio Lugo surgery, which opens the door for Jed Lowrie to open the season at shortstop. We have minor World Baseball Classic injuries to Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis. We have the continued healing of outfielder-first baseman Mark Kotsay. We have the occasional homerun being hit by Captain Jason Varitek this spring. We have the release of backup catcher Josh Bard and the anointing of new backup receiver George Kottaras, who just happens to be out of options (I read where some MLB executives feel that another shoe will drop, and the Sox may be on the verge of acquiring someone like Jarrod Saltalamacchia or Miguel Montero). We have, perhaps, the return to health (and shape) of very important starter Brad Penny. We have the continued spring success of starter Clay Buchholz. We have the steady health progress of third baseman Mike Lowell. We have a little competition for the temporary position of backup utility infielder (will Nick Green keep the seat warm for Lowrie?). And we wonder if veteran outfielder Brad Wilkerson will make the opening day roster or be shown the door in lieu of his astounding spring strikeout total.

We have seen the beginning of Lars Anderson and Junichi Tazawa, and see why Tazawa will surely be welcomed to the major leagues.

Other topics will be covered in upcoming postings, like some thoughts on the World Baseball Classic, the retirement of Curt Schilling, and my own spring training visit to Fort Myers. The MLB Network continues to provide outstanding coverage of spring games, and I can hardly wait for the nightly show when the season finally begins. It has been a long spring training, but apparently not long enough for the great Pedro Martinez, a man who is still unemployed.

Photo: Future Sox first baseman Lars Anderson in the on deck circle at the Red Sox Player Development Complex in Fort Myers.