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Hope meets reality as new season dawns

By Buster Olney

Sunday, April 5, 2009

The optimism that manifests itself in every spring training will begin to seep away today at 8 p.m., just like clockwork, when Brett Myers throws the first pitch. For 30 teams, the hopeful notion of What Might Be is quickly replaced by the hard reality of What Is. On Opening Night two years ago, the St. Louis Cardinals were the defending champions, and Chris Carpenter, their ace, pitched six innings -- through a nagging ache in his arm. He would not pitch again the entire season, and the Cardin ...

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