So another opening day is at hand. A city bedecked in red. Clydesdale leading the motorcade around the stadium. Redbird greats of the past for all to behold. The atmosphere is electric, and anyone who wants to understand St. Louis needs to attend at least one Opening Day.

The manager said today that he looks forward to the first game of the season because it breaks the tie. Everybody is tied on Opening Day. Optimism runs high because everybody's 0-0. Now will the Cardinals' future forget its past?

There are a lot of questions about this team. Can the starting pitching hold up and not burn the bullpen out early? How soon can Mark Mulder and Chris Carpenter safely rejoin the rotation? How effective will they be upon their return? How much thump will the lineup have besides Albert Pujols? Will Skip Schumaker be a catalyst at the top of the order? And can the crop of outfielders keep phenom Colby Rasmus down on the farm?

Of one thing there is no question. The happiest man in the stadium will be rookie pitcher Kyle McClellan. He said today that he's been to five or six openers in the past, but this will be the first one the Hazelwood West grad will attend in the uniform of his hometown team, to be introduced to the sold-out crowd, most certainly to a standing ovation. When Rene Knott interviewed Kyle today, a smile never left his face. And that was on the day before. Imagine how he will be today.

The fun begins later, weather permitting.

It's normally a big Monday, I mean Big Monday (with apologies to ESPN). In addition to the Cardinals opening the season, the NCAA usually crowns a new champion on this day. But the Final Four is running a week behind the baseball season, so that won't happen until next Monday. But, the Final Four is set. And for the first time since teams have been seeded, all four top teams have made it through.

Who do you like? North Carolina, UCLA, and Memphis have looked really strong in mowing down their four opponents, while Kansas got the monkey off Bill Self's back in holding off a surprisingly tough Davidson squad. I have three of my original four teams still alive, and so I see no reason to change my mind now. UCLA and North Carolina will advance to the final, and the Tar Heels will cut down the nets. Let's say, 76-72.

Clifford Roberts, the original hammer behind Augusta National Golf Club, the folks that bring you the Masters, has been dead for almost 40 years now. And little by little since then, the Masters is pulling away its veil of secrecy that made it such a Holy Grail of Sports for those of us who have never been on the grounds in the first week of April.

No, the tournament is still sold out, with the waiting list for admission measured not in hundreds or thousands, but in generations. No, there are still the limited TV commercial interruptions on the weekend. No, the course is still a pristine mix of the lushest green fairways, blindingly white bunkers, and vivid pastel pink azaleas. And no, don't you dare refer to the gallery as a "crowd". In Augusta National lexicon, the people on hand are "patrons".

There was a time when CBS was only allowed to show the back nine holes of the course. Gradually, though, TV has won out and we now get to see the leaders play all 18 holes on Sunday. And now, ESPN has squeezed into the mix, replacing USA Network as the place to see the early rounds.

They are also promoting that they will have the first broadcast of the Wednesday par-3 Tournament. When I first started in this business, we were lucky to get video of the par-3 for our 10 p.m. show, and it was shot by a news camera by one of our affiliates, and then usually only if there had been a hole-in-one. My, my, how times have changed.

Until next time...