16 Days Until 2020 MLB Opening Day

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 29 DAYS UNTIL MLB OPENING DAY!!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

29 is a prime number and it's appropriate that Rod Carew honors that number today. He was one of a kind, one of the purest hitters in baseball history. The sweet-swinging lefty won seven AL batting titles and hit .330 or better 10 different times. TEN. He won the 1977 AL MVP when he batted .388 with 14 homers, 100 RBIs, 23 stolen bases and 128 runs scored for the Twins. The Hall of Famer also made the All-Star team in 18 of his 19 MLB seasons. He was one of the very best.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 28 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! That's right, exactly 4 weeks from today.

We will allow Bert Blyleven to throw out the first pitch today as he did so for 22 MLB seasons. The Hall of Famer won 289 games with one of the best curveballs in MLB history and he struck out 3,701 batters (fifth all-time). He was one of the best.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 27 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!!!

Juan Marichal leg kick. I'll say no more.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 26 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!!

We're just a Wade Boggs hit away from the opening of the 2020 season. Boggs finished his career with 3,010 hits in 2,439 games while hitting .328 for his career with a .415 OBP. He was truly one of the sweetest swinging hitters in MLB history.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 25 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

We'll start the day with a Barry Bonds image and leave out the controversy talk. No matter what he did at the end of his career to enhance his statistics, this was one of the very best hitters in all of MLB history. He was a seven-time MVP, including four straight from 2001-04. He finished with an MLB record 762 home runs, an MLB record 2,558 walks, an MLB record 688 intentional walks, 2,935 hits, a .298 average and a .444 OBP. I'll say no more.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 24 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!!!

Say Hey, it's Willie Mays. One of the greatest players in MLB history, Willie Mays accumulated 3,283 hits, 523 Home Runs, 1,903 RBI and 338 stolen bases while hitting .302. And he was damn fun to watch in center field as he caught them backward and forward!!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 23 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

We kick the day off with the mighty swing of Ryne Sandberg, a Hall of Famer who spent 16 years in the majors and finished with 2,386 hits and 282 home runs. He hit .285 and led the NL with 40 homers in 1990. That year with the Cubs he hit .306 with 40 home runs, 100 RBI, 25 stolen bases and a league-high 116 runs. What a year. What a Cubbie.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 22 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

Let's go modern with this one and let Clayton Kershaw throw out the first pitch. The three-time Cy Young Award winner owns a career 2.44 ERA and 2,464 strikeouts in 2,274 innings. He has led the NL in ERA five times and in wins three times. He will go down in history as one of the greatest left-handers in MLB history and he's still being drafted in today's game. Great.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 21 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Three weeks from today America's Pastime returns!!

There were a lot of great players who wore No. 21, but Roberto Clemente gets the nod here. He died while trying to help others and he was a trailblazer for future Puerto Rican players. He finished his career with exactly 3,000 and earned Hall of Fame honors with his relentless hustle on the field and skill with the bat, finishing with a .317 career batting average, 240 homers and 1 MVP Award.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 20 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! That has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?

We lead off today with one of the all-time greats, Frank Robinson. He won the Rookie of the Year in 1956 at the age of 20 and he went on to win MVP Awards in each league: for Cincinnati in 1961 and for Baltimore in 1966. He finished with 586 home runs, 1,812 RBI and a .294 average.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 19 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

Could it be anyone else when we are 19 days away from a new baseball season? Of course not. And not only that, but I saw my first Robin of 2020, a sure sign of spring in snowy Wisconsin!! Yount was my favorite player and probably still is as I remember him breaking in with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1974 as a teenager. To a teenage kid it was inspiring and he went on to play 20 seasons with the Brewers, finishing with two MVP Awards, a World Series appearance and 3,142 hits. I was at the game when he collected his 3,000th hit and it was a celebration in Brew Town. Here's to the best in Brewers' history.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 18 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

We give you Andy Van Slyke to start out the day as he had one of the purest swings in all of baseball. He played 13 MLB seasons and finished with 1,562 hits. He also was part of that great Pirates' team that just could never quite get to the World Series. I hope your fantasy teams aren't like that this year and can get over the hump and win a title in 2020.

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 17 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

We're getting down to the nitty gritty now, so naturally that reminds us of Cubs' sweet-swinging Mark Grace. Don't ask me why, but the number fits. Enjoy.

[JohnP]

What? No Jim Gantner for #17?!

[Greg Ambrosius]

What? No Jim Gantner for #17?!

I'll be accused of favoritism John if I picture all of our boyhood heroes. But good call fellow Cheesehead!!

[Greg Ambrosius]

NOW ONLY 16 DAYS UNTIL 2020 MLB OPENING DAY!! Have you drafted that winning NFBC team yet?

At the age of 20, Dwight Gooden went 24-4 with a 1.53 ERA, SIXTEEN COMPLETE GAMES and 268 strikeouts in 276.2 innings. Imagine that happening today. He won a Cy Young Award that year and then helped the New York Mets win a World Series title the next year. He was amazing early on, but we all know what happened later in his career and his life. But damn, what an arm.