THE COUNTDOWN TO '07 IS UNDER WAY

Our milder-than-usual November temperatures--at least here in the Northeast--have kept me from starting my countdown of the number of days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training. We all know that is when spring arrives in our heart. But I have seen two indicators in Independent Baseball circles which tell me others have their countdowns to opening day started.

I first noticed it on the South Coast League's website (www.SouthCoastLeague.com) where the webmaster has set up a clock which lets fans know down to the second how long it is until the first official pitch is thrown in the new league. The clock read 183 days, 23 hours, 34 minutes and 10 seconds when I looked at it tonight (Tuesday).

Oh, I also found out the six teams in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina signed 16 players out of the South Coast League's initial tryout camp in Bradenton, FL last Saturday. That is a very high count out of approximately 70 attendees, which the SCL reported.

The other site where a countdown is under way is with the American Association's St. Paul Saints. A media release 12 days ago reminded readers it was only 183 days until the Saints once again march into Midway Stadium. So that count would have been down to 171 days today.

Mild weather or not, these reminders make the heart thump just a wee bit faster.

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