There’s Something Different About Opening Day

A look at what makes opening day so different in 2017.

Shutter Runner/ via Flickr.com

“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.” -Joe DiMaggio

For baseball fans Opening Day is more than just the beginning of another season. It represents rebirth, renewal and rejuvenation. It is an opportunity to have new hope for something special to begin.

For fans they get something we rarely get in real life; a fresh start. Every team is starting off with a 0–0 record and fans everywhere can begin the long 162 game journey with their favorite team.

Fans of 29 teams are looking to forget about last season and see if they can watch their team climb to the top and become the next World Series Champion. This year brings something for Cubs fans that is very unfamiliar. For the first time in 108 years Cubs fans have a mixture of excitement for what the 2017 season will bring and still clinging to a World Series title.

As Cubs fans we have grown used to the long cold winter following another disappointing season, but now we face a shortened off-season with little time to enjoy being on top. There will be no more “Wait until next year” for us. The label of “Lovable Losers” is long gone.

So many times in the past Cubs fans have entered a new season with uncertainty of how good our team will be. However, this season brings on a new outlook. We already know how good this team can be and now we hope they can conjure up that same magic formula in 2017.

The 2017 season puts our team in a unique position for true Cubs fans. We now have a target on our backs. We now have become the gold standard for what other teams want to become. We are kings of the mountain and we are hungry for more.

What Tom Ricketts, Jed Hoyer and Theo Epstein have done is put Cubs fans in a place where short off-seasons should become a thing of the norm. And so we enter a new era of Cubs baseball. An era where expectations are high and off-seasons short. An era where we are the team to beat for years to come.

Arturro Padavilla III/ via Flickr.com

Now Opening Day is upon us and who better to kick things off against than our bitter rival, the St. Louis Cardinals. So many times we have been chasing them and trying to become them, but now the tables have turned and this team better be ready. We can expect every opponent to bring their best night in and night out. After all that is what happens when you finally reach the summit.

Let’s not get cocky though just yet. We got the big one out of the way in 2016, but it wont be any easier in 2017. We still have a ways to go to become a dynasty and the pressure might be even more intense this year. After all as Cubs fans we didn’t even know how we were supposed to act last year. Now we do and we have to hang on to that hunger that we have always had.

So here we are and all spring training cuts have been made, the roster is official. The 2017 Opening Day roster has a majority of familiarity and a few new faces for us to watch. Let’s take a look at our team.

Starting Pitchers

Jon Lester

Jake Arrieta

John Lackey

Brett Anderson

Kyle Hendricks

Relief Pitchers

Wade Davis

Hector Rondon

Pedro Strop

Koji Uehara

Mike Montgomery

Justin Grimm

Carl Edwards Jr.

Catchers

Willson Contreras

Miguel Montero

Infielders

Anthony Rizzo

Ben Zobrist

Javy Baez

Tommy La Stella

Addison Russell

Kris Bryant

Outfielders

Kyle Schwarber

Matt Szczur

Jon Jay

Albert Almora Jr.

Jason Heyward

Go Cubs Go!!!

Craig House is a diehard Cubs fan that never forgave his parents for making his middle name Ryan instead of Ryne. You can follow Craig on Twitter @Craig_House3