I am very excited to see that Major League Baseball is back after a 99-day lockout. The lockout between MLB team owners and the MLB players association occurred after the expiration of the 2016 collective bargaining agreement. Spring training was slightly delayed, along with Opening Day, but a 162-game season was salvaged.

I do not follow MLB as closely as I used to because of classes and such but it still brings me joy whenever I do have the opportunity to watch it. As someone who has played baseball for most of my life, I love the sport and watching it is no different. There is nothing quite like being on the field, battling in the batter’s box against a talented pitcher, but being able to go to the stadium and watch some of the best players in the world do their work comes pretty close. The atmosphere also just is full of good vibes, since its usually summer. When I am able to go, I usually go with my family, there’s good music and food, warm weather, and there’s always the opportunity to root for your favorite team.

Out of all the stadiums I’ve been to, my favorite one is PNC Park in Pittsburgh. I’m not from Pittsburgh, but I love the city and the stadium has an amazing view no matter where you’re sitting with the view of the Pittsburgh skyline. Personally, my favorite team is the New York Yankees and despite some mishaps in the past few years, I’m hoping that they will be able to get it together this year. There are also a lot of very good teams this year between the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Toronto Blue Jays to name a few, so it will certainly be a difficult road. The defending World Series champs, the Atlanta Braves, likely will have a difficult time making it back, but it certainly is not impossible.

I hope that I will be able to follow this season closer than ones in years past because it is shaping up to be a very interesting and competitive season. For example, the LA Dodgers won in 2020 and were extremely close to making it back again last year. It is a shame that the closest MLB team is a couple of hours away but at least there are a few within Erie’s general radius such as the Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Cleveland Guardians.