“Well, now, here we are… together again. You might look a little different, and you might sound a little different. But despite our uncertainties and despite your imperfections, you’re still you. You’re still baseball. And here you come to make us smile and to make us mad. To give a little hope and a little routine. Here you come with the moments and the memories and your endless possibilities. Here you come for the 2020 season, one we won’t ever forget,” said by Joe Davis, Play-by-play broadcast announcer for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Joe Davis said this in a video that SportsNet LA posted onto Twitter on Dodgers Opening Day. I saw the video and felt an overwhelming amount of emotions. I felt excited, sad, happy, nervous, confused but most importantly, I felt grateful. Grateful for the fact that I was going to be able to watch live baseball again with my family. This brings a sense of normalcy back into our lives, and I will take any kind of “normal” I can get right now.

The 2019 Dodgers put up a strong fight. They had a great season that included a trip to the playoffs. The 2019 team set some records, such as having the most wins in franchise history and winning the most home games in Dodger Stadium history. The Dodgers also won the National League West by a landslide for the seventh consecutive year. Though they lost early on in the Division series, 2019 wasn’t a bad year for the Dodgers.

Let’s start off with the guy everyone can’t stop talking about: Mr. Mookie Betts. Betts, 2018 AL MVP, four-time Gold Glover and All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger, just signed a 12-year, $365 million contract with the Dodgers all the way through 2032. He is considered “one of the best all-around players in baseball: an elite leadoff hitter with power, speed and four Gold Gloves in right field,” according to ESPN. From the looks of it, he will be a successful addition to the team, and Dodgers fans are definitely excited to have him.

Mookie Betts will join the outfield crew, including Cody Bellinger and Joc Pederson. It’s hard to find another team with an outfield like the Dodgers right now: two MVP’s, three Gold Glovers, a batting title and All-Stars.

2016 Rookie of the Year and two-time All-Star, Corey Seager, will be starting at shortstop this year. His body is fully recovered from his Tommy John and labrum surgery, and he is ready to get this season underway. “2016 is probably the last time I felt as good as this,” Seager said. This is great news being that 2016 was his Rookie of the Year season.

The Dodgers starting pitching rotation will look a little different this season after losing Hyun-Jin Ryu and Rich Hill. The rotation will include Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, Alex Wood, Walker Buehler and possibly younger up and coming pitchers like Dustin May. Catching behind the plate for these pitchers will be Will Smith and Austin Barnes.

This season will definitely be interesting and one no one will ever forget. I can’t wait to tell my kids one day that there was a time when baseball season didn’t start until July, everyone was wearing masks, there were no fans in the ballpark and only 60 games were played.

All in all, the Dodgers are heading into the 2020 season with the deepest roster in the National League. They are the most favored to win the National League West title for the eighth consecutive season.

The Dodgers kicked off this unique season last night with a win against the Giants 8-1. After a 119-day delay, the boys in blue are coming in hot and ready to play. Their next game is tonight against the Giants at 6:40 p.m. at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers posted a video onto their Twitter account captioned, “Baseball, we’ve been waiting for you.” Rob Lowe narrated the video and he said something towards the end that gave me the chills and I wanted to end this blog with what he said.

“For one day, we will all be together again. And when that time comes, we hope there is more to celebrate than just being able to see each other again. So stay healthy, stay safe, stay with us. It’s time for Dodger Baseball.”