Opening baseball thoughts (salvo)

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For me, Wednesday stared with a warning: Bundle up. It’s cold and unbelievably windy out there today.

Ah. Must be the start of high school baseball season. April in Connecticut will never be confused with April in Palm Springs. We inexorably spend the majority of the first few weeks bundled up chin-down, hands buried and, typically, wondering if the rain will ever stop long enough to get a game.

In short, high school baseball weather stinks.

Though we caught a break for Wednesday’s opener without any rain, the wind was out in gale-force making it feel like an icebox at Fairfield Ludlowe’s Kwanis Field.

Luckily, they have a pressbox. So, not only was I dry, I was warm, too.

So I got to type some thoughts (gripes?) for your viewing pleasure:

…

Of all the polls the New Haven Register* loves to run, none is as worthless as the baseball poll.

It’s really not their fault. It’s just that of all the sports with a major NHR poll attached, baseball produces the least amount of preseason buzz. So there’s less info out there that voting sportswriters can find out in a short amount of time.

*(Incidentally, The Reg’s Joe “Hoops” Morelli has stepped aside to focus on his editing duties while young Chris Hunn takes over.)

Anyway, writers inevitably will sink their teeth into the first concrete piece of information they get their grubby hands on, especially if it’s on team from beyond their area. It doesn’t matter if the information is less than reliable. It’s all they have, so they go with it.

Meanwhile, other writers probably just stick to voting the same team’s as last year’s poll and vow to sort it out later.

Hence, you get a poll that’s pretty much all over the place. Like this one:

1. Amity (The consensus pick and, since the Spartans are something like 96-11 in the last four seasons, not a bad one. But, seeing that they lost all of their top pitchers and aren’t even the defending champs, I decided to drop them a notch.

2. Guilford I was one of four who decided to vote Guilford No. 1. Edit: Final score from Wednesday: Amity 15, Guilford 10. So much for that.

3. Bunnell I really couldn’t understand this. Bunnell is going to be good, but the Dawgs can’t be No. 3 with Dan Paolini out for at least a month

(Incidentally, somebody (won’t say who) called me out on calling Bunnell pitcher Taylor Lasko “clearly” the best player in the conference. In retrospect, I wouldn’t have written it. What I do like about Lasko that maybe the other players don’t have is the pitching resume. He’s the best batter and the best pitcher on his team. There’s at least one batters who’s be better than him. I still think Lasko gets the edge by being a dominant pitcher.)

…and now, back to the poll.

4. Seymour I have no problems with this.

5. Plainville Uh… this may be right, but it’s probably wrong. Then again, I have no clue about them, nor will I until at least late May, if not June.

6. Fitch Someone from the ECC is going to be good. But pitcher Matt Harvey — who seemed to collect at least a half dozen features from the New Haven Register and Hartford Courant over the last year or so — is long gone (beat it, dude).

So, i’m not so sure Fitch is the best. I think I voted Montville. But, again, what do I know?

7. Bristol Eastern (Bristol’s good for a top 10 team every year. So, yeah, why not them?

8. Berlin. Uh, ok. Sure.

9. Pomperaug While I think Pomperaug is going to contend in the SWC. As of right now, this is kind of a stretch. But, again, this is more proof that voters are going by last year’s poll. Pomperaug made the Class L final last year, so they MUST be good this year right?

10. Xavier OK. I guess you have to throw another SCC team in there.

Take a look at it now and I guarantee you that—with the exception of No. 1 Amity and No. 2 Guilford—these teams will be nowhere near their current ranking come this time four weeks from now.

Whoops, gotta go. Game time.

SPB

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