Celebrate the baseball solstice (and put a new equinox on your calendar)

Today, Dec. 28, 2017, marks the annual Baseball Solstice. That’s the mid-point day between the last out of the World Series and the first exhibition game or games of Spring Training.

The World Series ended the night of Nov. 1 in Los Angeles, with the Houston Astros defeating the Dodgers. I am still processing the idea of the Astros being the champions of the American League, let alone all of baseball, but I am happy for it nonetheless.

Cactus and Grapefruit league play starts up Feb. 23 in Arizona and Florida, respectively. Note that I do not count a handful of games a few days ahead of that in which various Major League teams will play college teams.

For those newcomers to the Ball Caps Blog, the idea for the Baseball Solstice came to me in a Druidical moment in 2011 balancing the despair of the long winter ahead with the hope of a new baseball season to come.

This year, again looking seeking celestial guidance to get through another long, cold winter, I’ve decided to add the Baseball Equinox — the mid-point between the end of the World Series and the beginning of the regular season on North American soil. For this winter, the equinox will fall on Jan. 14, which is 74 days after the series and 74 days ahead of Opening Day, which will be on March 29.

More than any other sport, baseball represents hope, renewal and the wonder of new possibilities. A happy 2018 to all!