I begin the typical day with unreasonable hopes of fulfilling all of my goals and desires. Inevitably, I accomplish some things, but there are always a few lingering things that go unattended to. Pretty typical experience for anyone with some level of ambition. Going into this new Cardinals season, I have had many, many thoughts and hopes. Most of them irrational, at least when looked at collectively. Daydreaming about numbers such as 110 wins, 55 homers, 150 RBI, 24 wins, 55 saves etc. is one of the best parts of reflecting on any season to come. But this offseason I thought about Ricky Ankiel much more than any particular statistic, player or news item. There was only
one thing that I have consistently said over and over these past few months to my close friends about this pending baseball season: All I ask for is that Ankiel walks out to the mound to throw the top of the first inning in a regular season game at Busch Stadium. I've been waiting for years now. After dominating hitters in most of the at-bats he was involved in (except for the Coors misstep) last September, it seemed only a positive and healthy offseason stood in the way of Ankiel's return. He showed up at spring training. He threw simulated batting practice and looked sharp. Two weeks later, he is an outfielder. I'm going into my eighth season as a Cardinals fan living 15 minutes from Busch Stadium. I am still waiting to see a more impressive pitcher to see in person than what I saw from Ankiel (at his best) in 1999. Though it was a mere flash in time, it was sweet to see his knee-buckling curve. I'm glad I got to see Ankiel at his best, but how sad for those who never will.