I know I promised more on my Abu Dhabi experience in last week’s blog, and more will come soon, but today, I must digress because it is Opening Day for the Philadelphia Phillies, marking the return of baseball and one of my favorite times of the year. Besides March Madness, which as an SU alum was disappointing for me this year, there is no better time of the sports year than when baseball season begins. The season officially opened yesterday, with the Yankees, the Braves and the Nationals returning, as well as many other fan favorites. The reigning World Champs, the San Francisco Giants, returned, losing to a division rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers. There is certainly a buzz in the air today, as the Phillies prepare to take the field at 1:05 p.m., playing against the Houston Astros. Roy Halladay, one of our pitching aces, squares off against former Phillie Brett Myers. This is looking to be an especially exciting season for us Phillies fans, due in large part to our offseason acquisition of Cliff Lee, leaving us with a pretty phenomenal starting pitching rotation of Halladay, Lee, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels and Joe Blanton (while not a big name, Blanton is a strong fifth-place starter). I personally can’t wait for the first pitch to be thrown or to make my way to the ballpark for my first game. The only oddity of this year’s Opening Day? The snow falling outside my office window! — Kim Krol, eFlyer editor, circulation and public relations executive