Hunt and Peck: Special Opening Day Edition

The wait is over.
Opening Day is here.
The game will start soon.
Prepare to cheer! (And drink beer!)

Matt Carpenter doubles,
Allen Craig RBI,
Matt Holliday's leg-kick,
A Matt Adams big fly.

And Adam Wainwright, the pitcher
Against stockings o' Red.
Waino throws his curveball
Batters shake their head.

So let's go Cardinals,
The team with my heart.
Let's get this game going;
Let the season finally start! - USA Today

Opening Day, You Say...

• 13 games today!!!! - Hardball Talk
• How do the 30 teams' Opening Day starters stack up against each other? Here is a ranking of the Opening Day starters. Look at number four for a familiar face. - Yahoo
• Baseball is always providing special memories. When they happen on Opening Day, that just makes them even special-er. Athlon Sports
• If you want to know more Opening Day history, check this out! - Baseball Almanac
• The White House hates fun, apparently, as Opening Day will not become a national holiday. Boo. - KSDK; Cut 4
• As the season begins all the teams have hopes and aspirations, but some have better chances than others. - Bleacher Report
• Beyond the Box Score also does a preview of each team. This link goes to their hub for all their previews. - Beyond the Box Score
• The Red Baron also does his own preview of Every Team in Two Sentences. He is brilliant, that one. - Viva el Birdos
• C70 at Cards Conclave does his wrap-up of the "Playing Pepper" series, where he looks at each team in the MLB through interviews with other writers. - Cards Conclave
• The start of the season marks the start of the power rankings. See where each team ranks. - Fox Sports
• VEB made their predications on the end of the season awards. Here is what others thought. - Fox Sports
• With the Yankees and Astros opening Tuesday and the Padres and Dodgers opening Sunday (excluding the Australia games), Opening Day will be chalk full with 13 games scheduled. - ESPN
• Of course, as I mentioned, the Dodgers and Padres squared off Sunday, with the Padres winning 3-1 on a Chris Denorfia two-run single in the 8th. (WARNING: Video auto-plays) - ESPN
• If you have nothing to do until 3:10pm, you can enjoy MLBTV's Free Game of the Day, Royals at Tigers at 12:08pm. - MLB

The Cardinals Will Be Playing, Too!

• The most important game, obviously, will take place at 3:10pm today in Cincinnati. Adam Wainwright will face off against The Unmentionable One. - ESPN; CBS Sports
• Waino will lead us in to battle... and with beautiful handwriting. - STL Today
• Of course, a different pitcher will take the mound Wednesday, although VEB seems to think they look alike so we may not tell the difference. More on that in this semi-serious series preview. - Redbird Rants
• And with the game tomorrow, the roster is now set. Mark Ellis, Jaime Garcia, and Jason Motte will start on the 15-day DL. - MLB; Viva el Birdos
• More on the Ellis injury (and how this affects Pete Kozma - warlockery...). - STL Today
• Here is what we can expect in Cincinnati today. - STL Sports Minute
• The mission of Spring Training is to answer questions for the upcoming season. Here is what we know now. (Sorry, slideshow.) - STL Today
• The writers on VEB make some predictions, too. I will refer back to these to see who has the most correct. - Viva el Birdos; Viva el Birdos
• Michael Wacha has ambitions for this season. If you wanna know what they are then you are in luck! - STL Today
• Mike Matheny is proud of his players and ready to start the season. - Mike Matheny

Bird Tweets:

Here we go #openingday

— Daniel Descalso (@DanielDescalso) March 31, 2014

I feel like I have something to do today

— Joseph Kelly Jr. (@JosephKellyJr) March 31, 2014

It's finally here... Opening day!!! Lets get it going #CardinalNation

— Kolten Wong (@KoltenWong) March 31, 2014

It's here... #OpeningDay

— Matt Carpenter (@MattCarp13) March 31, 2014

Can...we go now?! #OpeningDay

— Shane Robinson (@SUGASHANE43) March 31, 2014

KNOW THY ENEMY: The Cincinnati Reds...

• If you are looking for more info on the Reds, look no further than these previews. - Beyond the Box Score; Viva el Birdos
• Same goes for the other teams in the central:
  Chicago Cubs - Beyond the Box Score; Viva el Birdos
  Pittsburgh Pirates - Beyond the Box Score; Viva el Birdos
  Milwaukee Brewers - Beyond the Box Score; Viva el Birdos
• You can also checkout Cardinals70's "Playing Pepper" series for more insight into the NL Central. - Cards Conclave
• The four game series with the Reds kicks off tonight at 3:10pm in Cinci. The game is available on television Fox Sports Midwest and Ohio, and ESPN and will be broadcast on the radio on KMOX and WLW 700 (but you will probably get KMOX no matter where you are - just sayin'.) - MLB
• The next NL Central game will take place on Friday when the Cards take on the Pirates at Pittsburgh at 6:05pm.