Angel Pagan - exciting the Mets fans for now Photo by Tony Dejak - AP	Fernando Martinez - late call-up? Photo by Simmons  -  News

While most sports outlets are covering the conclusion of the college basketball season and the ongoing regional basketball tournaments in anticipation of March Madness and the NCAA Tournament, that is something I just can't get excited about, at least not yet. 

How difficult is it, really, to make a 64-team (or 65) tournament?  It reminds me of the playoffs systems in the NHL or even the NBA.  In the NBA East , teams with losing records will almost surely make the playoffs.  I'm convinced the expansion of the NCAA Tournament was to finally kill the NIT's.  And make more money, of course.  And this year, with  1 Euro  worth $1.57, they will have to make more than ever, as will all of us.  Yay Bush !!

It's the anticipation of the upcoming Major League Baseball season that's really got me going.  As much as Billy Crystal always wanted to face major league pitching, that's how anxiously I await the coming season, and, at the end of it, the crowning of the Mets as 2008 World Series Winners.

Not that there has been much indication of that this spring.  The spring hero for the Mets thus far, has been Angel Pagan, heretofore a light-hitting minor league outfielder, but his .400 batting average this spring promises Mets fans an alternative to the perennially-injured Moises Alou in left field.  It doesn't hurt, either, to watch a 27-year old jump about three feet in the air to snag a line drive over his head, as Angel is seen doing in the photo above.

Then there is Fernando Martinez, pictured above right, who is the Mets' most promising outfield prospect, and who is batting about .333 at press-time.  Signed at the tender age of 15, the young Dominican at 19 shows a classic swing, nice poise and an enthusiasm for making the big club.

Fernando signed with the Mets after having been offered more money from San Diego back in 2004.  A large part of the reason is his namesake, Pedro Martinez, also a Dominican, but Fernando has also idolized another Mets favorite, Carlos Beltran. 

While Fernando isn't scheduled to make the big club this year, as he has been plagued by wrist and thumb injuries in past years and Mets management wants to see him play at least one full minor-league season, anything is possible, especially given the Mets current outfield situation.  How great would it be for Fernando to be called up after the All-Star break to help his idols clinch the NL pennant, to maybe have Carlos Beltran drive him in with the winning run in a Pedro Martinez complete game?

A dream, you say?  Well, maybe it is, but Pedro is injury-free for the first time in years.  He finished strong last year, and, if he needed another challenge, he has Johan Santana to shoot for as the #1 Mets pitcher.  And Carlos Beltran, who had been saddled with tendonitis in both knees for years, has finally had the required operations, and has been anxious to get back in the game.

Anything's possible in the Spring.  This year, even the Tampa Bay Rays (nee Devil Rays) are being touted as a playoffs-contender, and not without good reason.  The outfield will consist of Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton and Rocco Baldelli.  Carlos Pena will man first base and promising Akinori Iwamura takes over at second.  That will make for a very nice lineup with speed and power.  Scott Kazmir, James Shields and Matt Garza make for an excellent one-two-three punch as starters, Troy Percival was brought in to close, and Al Reyes makes a nice middle reliever.  They also have veterans such as Jonny Gomes and Cliff Floyd to DH and pinch-hit where necessary.

The Cincinnati Reds, believe it or not, also have high hopes this Spring.  Their starting pitching will be Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo, Homer Bailey, Josh Fogg and Matt Belisle - not too bad at all.  But the big addition will be the closer, Francisco Cordero.  With a real closer, the Reds can move David Weathers back to a setup guy, a position at which he excels.  The Reds bats include the always formidable Ken Griffey and Adam Dunn.  Brandon Phillips and Edwin Encarnacion are two other youngsters who can do it all.

 

At this time of year, it’s easier to count the teams that don’t have any realistic expectations.  Teams that might be included in this category are the Pirates, Cardinals and Giants in the National League, the Orioles and Royals in the American League.  But I’m quite sure fans in those cities might strongly disagree, starting probably with Kansas City that can dream of big outings from young positional players while holding realistic expectations for their pitching staff.

 

If only a handful of teams have no shot, that means that 25 teams will be playing for all the marbles.  Who is to say they can’t, after the Rockies made it to the World Series last year?  Anything’s possible.  Look at the Mets slide into oblivion in 2007, the emergence of the Phillies, the Padres, the Diamondbacks and the Colorado darlings of Denver.

 

In the American League, it’s less wide open, at least on paper.  The Red Sox seem like shoe-ins, but even in that case, it becomes more and more likely that some of their aging stars, especially Big Papi and Manny Ramirez, may experience a decline.  A couple of injuries to starters or relievers, if coupled with a decline in production from their big guns, could spell disaster.  That would be a lot of bad luck perhaps, but it’s certainly a scenario that could enfold.

 

The big may fall.  Boston fans know this better than anyone after their beloved Patriots watched a journeyman wide receiver pull one off his helmet.  They could only watch helplessly as their ballyhooed quarterback spent much of the evening on his butt.

 

Yes, the Spring brings us lily of the valley, crocuses, tulips and high hopes.  But, shhh,  they don’t make it to the summer.