Rogers Hornsby once said "People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do, I stare out the window and wait for spring." For as long as I can remember and still to this day, this quote has fit me perfectly.

Like everyone, my link to the game has had to change with time from the days of actually playing the game to now being the head coach of the New Orleans Spice and also serving as a radio/tv color analyst with WGSO radio and WHNO TV for prep baseball broadcasts. But, internally, nothing has ever really changed because that same enthusiastic, passionate feeling that I had as a 17-year old boy playing in pinstripes for the Blue Jays at Jesuit High School still comes back each and every spring. The feeling hits me and I am immediately filled great excitement and hope for what the new season will bring.

This season will be extra special because a brand new fan will enter a local baseball park for the first time. My daughter, Abigail, will get to watch her dad coach for the first time in the summer of 2012 and that will indeed be a very humbling moment for me.

I hope that over time (with her daddy's help) she develops a love of the game as well. Abigail already has an outfit that says "Daddy's Baseball Buddy" and her own St. Louis Cardinals jersey, so we are getting off to a good start! But realistically, I just hope and pray that she too finds a great passion in her life as I did with the game of baseball. Baseball has helped shape my life and make me the man that I am today.

The game is pure. It brings families and friends together in the spirit of competition. It teaches life lessons to young people and prepares them for what lies ahead. It develops lasting friendships and cherished memories . It is a symbol of our youth and stands for all that is good in our world.

So as the 2012 baseball season gets into full swing, grab a hold of the enthusiasm and excitement, cherish the moments, make new friends and remember.

Baseball season is always a very special time of the year - It's a chance for boys to become men and for grown men to be boys!

I look forward to continuing this weekly "baseball blog" on sportsNOLA.com and thank my dear friend, Ken Trahan, for this opportunity to continue to promote our great game in a brand new way.