What I Learned At Spring Training

It's been a while since I've written one of these. And what better time to start again than Spring Training? It's the time when everything begins anew and anything is possible.

As I do every year, I spent the better part of this week in Florida following the Braves at Spring Training. If you love baseball, you don't need to put Spring Training on your bucket list...you need to put it on your "every year no matter what else is going on" list. I went for the first time in 2008 because I happened to be in the Orlando area and I will never miss another.

Spring Training is the closest adults can come to reliving Spring Break: One hundred percent fun with zero responsibilities. I'm not rubbing it in, I'm trying to inspire you to go. Or don't. The more people that show up the harder it is to get tickets. You know what? Stay home. Home is good.

Anyway, this post is pretty esoteric. If you're not a die-hard Braves fan you should probably stop reading now. For the rest of you, I thought I'd list a few things I learned in Lake Buena Vista this week as we get ready for that holiest of days: Opening Day.

While I make my living in the news business, I was anything but a reporter this week. So I didn't have access to the locker room, nor did I get any insight from players, coaches or officials. I did take several selfies with various points of interest in the background. My point is, this is a fan's perspective, but not just any fan. No one has followed this team closer for the last 30 years than I have. If I need to I'll show you every scorecard from the 1991 Worst To First season to prove it. While my colleagues in the press box can provide the inside scoop, they can't give you the feel from the cheap (and not-so-cheap) seats.

Here are 5 Things I Learned At Spring Training:

1) The Need For Speed - I remember going to Spring Training last year and being very impressed with the Braves new "small ball" approach. I thought Eric Young, Jr. was going to be a breakout player. I was wrong, but the team was much more entertaining than watching the Uptons stir up a gale force wind every night the year before. Don't forget the Braves were only 6 games out in late July last year before Jason Grilli got hurt and management used that as an excuse to pull the rug out from under the team...and us. This year's lineup is like last year's on steroids. Okay, bad analogy in baseball. But what I mean is this lineup has the chance to be a LOT of fun to watch. There's a lot of speed and Fredi Gonzalez is not afraid to use it. When someone reaches base, it's not a matter of if, but when they will be running. That approach created a number of runs during my stay. When a walk usually ends up on second, almost every base hit is an RBI. Most preseason periodicals I've read say some variation of "there's nothing in this lineup other than Freddie Freeman". These people are morons. This lineup is fun and you will enjoy watching it.  My only concern is third base. Adonis Garcia did homer while I was there, but didn't do much else. I was hoping Gordon Beckham would recapture his UGA magic, but he was less than spectacular. This could be a glaring weakness in an otherwise solid starting eight.

2) Pitching and Moaning - Here's where the preseason pundits seem to be dead on. The pitching is miserable. This was the team's downfall last year. The Braves simply could not hold a lead...and they couldn't during my week at Spring Training either. And it wasn't low-level rookies giving up all the runs. Setup man Jim Johnson got tattooed more often than a sorority girl on spring break. One of my sleeper picks to have a big year, Jhoulys Chacin, gave up a run in every inning I watched him pitch. And I'm pretty sure somewhere Manny Banuelos is still trying to get out of the first inning of Saturday's game. Now, this is a small sample size, but it does feed the fear that this pitching staff has issues. The one bright spot was Julio Teheran. He was dominant during my stay. But after him I have very large worries about the rotation. Like I said, I like the lineup, but I don't like it enough to believe it can score nine runs a night to win.

3) Fight For Your Right To Inciarte - Meet your new favorite player: Ender Inciarte. He only played two games during my trip, but it was enough to let me know you're going to enjoy watching him play every day. The Braves' haul from the Shelby Miller deal has been well-documented, but Inciarte may prove it to be even better than expected. He can flat-out go get it in center field. I honestly think he might be better defensively than Andruw Jones. Granted, I was never much of an Andruw fan, but you get the point. He will make an immeasurable difference at the top of the lineup. He appears disciplined and aggressive at the same time. And he can fly. I really liked Cameron Maybin, but I will readily admit Inciarte is a huge upgrade with All-Star potential. The Gold Glove should be his to lose this season. And speaking of that Miller trade...

4) Everybody Loves Dansby - No one had bigger rock-star status at this Braves camp than shortstop Dansby Swanson. If everything works out as planned, I predict this guy will be the face of the franchise over the next decade, not Freddie Freeman. Part of it is, well, his actual face. Pretty much every female fan in eyesight was on the edge of her seat every time he came to the plate...and it wasn't because there were runners on base. Secondly, he's really good. There's a reason he was the number one pick in the draft last summer. He made a handful of Andrelton Simmons-type plays while I was in Florida and actually appeared ahead of schedule at the plate. But what makes him different than every other player in camp (with the possible exception of Jeff Francoeur), is that he really, truly loves the Braves and the city of Atlanta. He is living his dream. Atlanta pro sports needs that. If you haven't read his thoughts on this subject, you need to. I'm glad I went to Florida when I did this year, because he was sent to the minor league camp the day after I left (along with Ozzie Albies and Mallex Smith, who were also fun to watch). But I sincerely hope he's in Atlanta at some point this season because, frankly, I can't wait.

5) Everybody Hates Disney -  The Braves' complex at the ESPN (formerly called Disney's) Wide World Of Sports used to be the crown jewel of Spring Training baseball. When the place opened, the Braves were its biggest draw. But now it's home to every amateur baseball, lacrosse, cheerleading, tennis and/or lawn darts competition for which ESPN can find room on its schedule. What that means for you, the Braves fan, is having to fight your way through traffic that will remind you of I-285 at 5:00 on a Friday and then thousands of people Braveheart-style just to get to the front gate of Champions Stadium. It also means paying two-to-three times as much for a ticket as you would at Turner Field for a game that ACTUALLY COUNTS. That's because Disney sets all of the prices, not the Braves. And it's one of the main reasons the Braves want out once their lease is done in 2017. Unfortunately they're having some trouble finding a new home, which means we may be stuck at Disney longer than any of us hoped. Another reason they want to move is location. Once the Astros leave Kissimmee for West Palm Beach after this spring, the Braves will have just one opponent within an hour's drive (the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland...45 minutes away). The Braves want to move closer to the Tampa area where the Blue Jays, Phillies, Yankees and Tigers would all be right next door, or possibly back down to South Florida where there is a cluster of teams as well. For the fan, this is a huge consideration. You want the Braves as close to as many teams as possible so you can see as many stadiums and games as possible during your trip.  This week we saw the Braves play in Lakeland and Kissimmee in addition to Disney. But after this year that won't be possible. This team and its fans can't get away from Disney fast enough.  I will say one thing in Disney's defense: Parking for games is free. It's the only free parking I've encountered at pretty much any sporting event I've ever attended above the high school level. It's a nice touch, but considering the price of everything else at the complex Disney should actually pay YOU to park.

Bonus Observation - Bucket hats are everything at Spring Training.

As for what I think will happen with the Braves this season, I'll save that for a couple of weeks. I have to have SOMETHING to write about. I will say this, I don't think it's going to be AS bad as the experts think.

Of course, the experts think it's going to be pretty bad.