In terms of starting an entire league's season with a bang, it's going to be hard to top what Chicago Cubs second basemen Ian Happ did in Miami on Thursday.
Batting in the leadoff spot, the 22-year-old got a first-pitch fastball from Marlins pitcher Jose Urena and took it to the moon, immediately adding some more fuel to the “juiced ball” theory's fire. Check out the big blast that this color announcer pretty much called:
https://twitter.com/FOXSports/status/979401001558982656
Hot start for the Marlins, who had an interesting off-season under new CEO and part-owner Derek Jeter. They say every team has hope on Opening Day, but if Happ's homer is any indication, all hope for 2018 just instantly vanished in South Beach.
Happ, who hit 24 homers in 115 games of his rookie season, is already well on pace to eclipse that number, and likely will hit over 100. Just a couple Opening day stats for ya.
RELATED: These MLB stadiums are the best spots to see dingers in 2018

Alex TrautwigAs the old saying goes, “chicks dig the long ball”, but since that's likely to be deemed offensive in 2018, let's just say we all dig the long ball. Which is true, and you can look no further than the 2017 postseason, one that featured an all-time record of 104 total home runs, 22 of them coming in the epic World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, another all-time record. It all added up to the most-watched postseason since 2011, and much of that could be fairly attributed to the deluge of dingers.
Of course, this new style of play is not without its detractors, specifically pitchers who believe there was a change to the ball at some point in the last few years. That may be true, but it's also possible that hitters are as good as ever at launching the ball out of the ballpark. Whatever you believe, the point remains: fans want to see home runs.
As we embark on the 2018 season, it feels like another record-setting home run season is im..

This article's headline is misleading, for I didn't take a second review of “Field of Dreams.” In truth, I've watched the film close to 40 times in my life. It was one of my favorite movies as a child, and when I covered Major League Baseball for six seasons, I made a viewing a rite of winter before Spring Training commenced. That tradition fell to the wayside a few years back, yet was rekindled when I recently came across this tale of America's Pastime on Netflix in the late hours of the night. I grabbed a couple of beers and dug into the couch, ready for the film to wash over me like old times.
Unfortunately, I needed a cold shower when it was done. Because I had been missing an incontrovertible truth all these years: “Field of Dreams” is a shitty movie.
Before you begin pontificating on the film's significance to fathers and sons or regurgitate James Earl Jones, “People will come Ray” speech, “Field of Dreams” certainly has heart and soul (albeit a mawkish o..

Golf fans often wonder what it would be like to make the drive down Magnolia Lane. But what’s it like for a legend like Jack Nicklaus? Well, not as different as you’d think.
Check out this cool video of Nicklaus arriving at Augusta National in 2016—and getting stopped by security. Multiple times. Yep, even a man with 18 majors is subject to the rigorous rules at the Masters.
“May I see your badge, sir?” Imagine if Jack replied: How about I show you one of my SIX green jackets instead?
Of course, once the security guards realized who it was, they became more lenient, even agreeing to let Nicklaus' son in a car behind him with no badge to come in as well. Side note: How does Jack Nicklaus’ son not have his own Masters credential?!
Jack also doesn't seem as jazzed up about the drive as you might expect. Then again, when you've been making this drive for nearly six decades — and getting stopped along the way — it makes more sense.
RELATED: 9 things Augusta National doesn&#..

Christopher Morris – CorbisNo sport boasts a more famous group of outcasts and also-rans than baseball. Partly it's because you can look like the guy from down the street who hasn't washed his car in five years and still play it, but there's also another (far more romantic) factor to consider: If you grew up after World War II and before the ruthless Canadian slaughter of America's Pastime in the early '90s, your hierarchy of childhood dream jobs was 1. Astronaut, 2. Ballplayer, and 3. Movie star.
So to celebrate baseball's mythological lineage of Famous Dudes Who Say They Can Hack it, as well as National Man Flu Awareness Day Opening Day, we decided to piece together the most star-studded semi-pro lineup that history has to offer. So without further ado, we present the Wanna-Be Baseball All-Stars, destined to lose 161 games and somehow still beat the Mets.
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Day Job: Actor with super punchable face (Whiplash, Bleed For This..

HUMBLE, Texas (AP) The last time Jordan Spieth was in contention at the Houston Open, he lost out in a three-way playoff in 2015. Then he won the Masters for his first major championship.

The Dallas native is back this week for the usual Masters’ tuneup, searching for some momentum.

”This hasn’t been the start that I’ve wanted so far, but I would like to think the season kind of starts next week,” Spieth said Wednesday. ”You put a lot of emphasis on peaking for four weeks a year and that first one comes at the Masters. I’m trying to have a fantastic event here obviously, which is the best way to gear up for (Augusta National).”

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The 24-year-old Spieth, ranked No. 4 in the world, has been hurt by inconsistent putting of late. He missed the cut in the Valspar Championship and then lost to Patrick Reed on Friday in the Dell Technologies Match Play.

He is one of three top-10 players in the field at the Golf Club of Houston, followed by Justin Rose at No. 5 a..

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) Lexi Thompson still has occasional nightmares about last year’s ANA Inspiration.

”I’ve relived it for a while,” said Thompson, set to open play Thursday at Mission Hills in the first major championship of the season.

Thompson was penalized four shots with six holes to play in regulation because of a rules violation the day before, wiping out her three-stroke lead. Playing through tears and feeding off the supportive fans, she rallied to force a playoff that So Yeon Ryu won on the first hole.

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”The fans were the only reason why I finished the way I did,” Thompson said. ”I heard them chanting my name on every shot, every tee. I heard them on the green chanting my name, and I was like, `I have to finish strong for them.”’

She had a 15-inch par putt on the 17th hole in the third round when she stooped to mark the ball, and then quickly replaced it about an inch away. A television viewer contacted the LPGA Tour the next day, and off..

Just when you thought '90s nostalgia had reached it's absolute theoretical zenith, along come the reality-suspension specialists over at Disney. Their plan? To turn Disneyland's Redd Rockett's Pizza Port (shockingly the real name of an actual restaurant at an amusement park designed for children) into “Alien’s Pizza Planet – A Better Place”, a recreation of Toy Story's iconic Pizza Planet.
Currently billed as a “temporary re-theme”, the pie-in-the-sky-pizza joint is set to open in time for PIXAR Fest, which kicks off April 13th. Disney has yet to make the change official, however, which means questions like “will the pizza be more than a hot grease pool on top of a triangle-ish piece of cardboard?” and “is there an actual Claw machine?” will have wait for at least another couple of days.
RELATED: Watch Mark Hamill surprise a bunch of Star Wars nerds at Disneyland ride
That said, Disney are nothing if not exacting when bringing their precious properties to life,..

Harry Caray and Me 1983See this ridiculous picture? This one picture right here is why I’m a Cubs fan, because of this moment, because of Harry, the ghost of an afternoon in Chicago and what is, conservatively estimating, 1983’s largest ball cap. (Seriously, it’s like my parents didn’t know hats came in sizes.) Chance and geography, a happy accident that led to four decades of living, which, it’s nice to remember on Opening Day, is how it goes for all of us.
Great and irrational value is ascribed to being a Cubs fan, because being a Cubs fan announces yourself as a stone-souled viking with the power to weather mythic proportions of loss. It’s a proof of worth, a declaration to other, flimsier folks that you’re made of stronger stuff than they are, that you’re morally superior, trophy or no trophy, to the pink-bellied chumps in Yankees hats. It broadcasts not just fanship but something approaching a complete psychological profile. It’s something so honest and sincere that Eddie Vedder w..

In typical Cleveland Cavaliers fashion this 2018 season, LeBron & co. took a major step back on Tuesday night after showing some signs of life by ripping off five straight wins, including an impressive comeback victory over the current No. 1 seed in the East, the Toronto Raptors. At the end of the day, the team's 98-79 loss to the Miami Heat is irrelevant once the playoffs start, but it does make you wonder if Cleveland was operating at full capacity in sunny South Beach, specifically James, who had his worst game of the month, which for him is still 18 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds (and 6 TOs).
Chances are the Cavs arrived Sunday night after LeBron posterized a few of the Nets in Brooklyn, which gave the squad plenty of time to, let's say, enjoy themselves. We're not accusing them of anything, no, we'll leave that to Shaquille O'Neal, who chalked up the Cavs ugly performance to having a little too much fun on the eve of Tuesday's game. Here's Shaq..