Hope springs eternal.

Across baseball diamonds in Arizona and Florida, and in the hearts of baseball fans around the world, the spring is full of hope.

Yes. In Pittsburgh, there’s hope, at least until June. There’s hope in Cleveland that a new name can replace the same old stink of futility in the face of winning it all.

In Atlanta, they hope their Braves can repeat. In Houston, they hope their Assholes Astros don’t cheat. In the Big Apple, two teams have viable dreams. In Oakland…well, they just hope to win more than 36 games.

There’s hope all around this time of year, before the marathon begins, and the “dog days” set in, and football returns, just in time for the stretch run to another Dodgers World Series win.

That’s my hope, that the highest payroll in the MLB delivers a championship, and Dodgers fans, the Truest of Blues, can all celebrate together.

Before all that, there’s got to be a first pitch on the first day, the first step to glory for one team, and the first step on a long road of pain for all the other losers.

Lift your plastic cups and your $18 beers, and give a toast to Opening Day. Baseball is back, and we’re ready to play.