Entry #39 - 2/17/05

“You always get a special kick on Opening Day, no matter how many you go through. You look forward to it like a birthday party when you're a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen.”

That quote came from the great Joe DiMaggio and how true it is. Here we are on the eve of “Opening Day” and the excitement and adrenaline are flowing inside me like wildfire. I have goose bumps just thinking about it. It will be tough to get any sleep tonight. As a player it was so much easier because you were so excited to finally put on that uniform with your teammates and get after somebody else. Now as a coach, my mind is racing with thoughts of preparation, execution, the weather, game administration, equipment, field conditions, etc. Did I say preparation? When you put a ball club on the field for the first time, it is always a mystery how they are going to mix. Have I covered every possible scenario that our kids will face? I guess we will just have to wait and see.

I know our players are excited to start the season. We have had a very productive pre-season. I compare the state of our ball club right now with a football team that is winding down “two-a-day” practices. A football team simply gets tired of beating up on each other. As the first game approaches they look forward to hitting somebody else. Our guys are tired of inter-squad scrimmages. Our pitchers are tired of facing our hitters. Our guys are simply anxious to play somebody else.

The Purple Eagles of Niagara are going to be a stern test. They have a new head coach and a lot of excitement surrounding their program. It is not a good sign when numerous major league baseball scouts from the northeast part of the country are calling to get directions to our park and double check game times. I soon found out they are coming south to see a couple of Niagara’s pitchers throw. From the information we have gathered from our scouting reports, they have a few big time pitching prospects, which can really bring it (90 -94mph range). What a great early test this will be for our hitters. I am excited about this tough match up.

Now it is off to home to spend some time with my two boys who are oblivious to the churning of my insides and all the things I am worried about. The only thing they know is that the Bucs play their first game tomorrow and they are going. I don’t know how my wife keeps up with them as they seem to be always going 100mph. On the way to school today, Tilo had me go down the roster to make sure he knew all the players names and numbers. He missed a few of our new players, but promised he would have them figured out by game time. My parents are also driving up from Atlanta for the weekend series and I am excited to see them. I am excited for my Dad to see our club. He will be able to give me a very honest gauge of how our club will be this year.

So as the sun rises tomorrow so do the dreams and hopes of our players. I am excited about the foundation of our program and the direction we are heading. I love our players and appreciate the commitment they have made to take our program to another level. Our journey starts tomorrow. I sure do love my job. Until next time…

Coach Skole