Jack Dempsey / AP

New York Mets' Jonathon Niese throws in the snow before the start of a baseball doubleheader between the New York Mets and Colorado Rockies on April 16 in Denver.

Jack Dempsey / AP

Coors Field grounds crew and stadium employees shovel snow before the start of a baseball doubleheader between the New York Mets and Colorado Rockies on April 16 in Denver.

By Pat Graham, AP Sports Writer

Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort is among the grounds crew shoveling snow in the hope his team will squeeze in a doubleheader against the New York Mets on Tuesday.

Nearly an hour before first pitch at 3:10 p.m. EDT, the crew had hauled off a majority of the eight inches of snow that covered the outfield grass. There were still mounds stacked up in front of the dugouts. Continue reading.

Jack Dempsey / AP

Dan O'Dowd, Executive Vice President, Chief Baseball Officer/General Manager and Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort, right, survey the snow while shoveling before the start of a baseball doubleheader between the New York Mets and the Colorado Rockies on April 16 in Denver.

Slideshow: Signs of Spring

Stephanie Pilick / AP

Warming weather and longer days bring out the first signs of Spring.

Launch slideshow

Photos by Ben Garvin / The St. Paul Pioneer Press via AP

Barry Maddox sprays thick layers of snow and ice off the seats of Target Field in Minneapolis, Minn., on March 19, 2013. Crews used high-pressure heated water to clean snow and ice from the seats of the baseball field in preparation for the Minnesota Twins' opening day baseball game against the Detroit Tigers on April 1.

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Koji Watanabe / Getty Images

Members of the Netherlands team celebrate winning the World Baseball Classic Second Round Pool 1 game against Cuba at the Tokyo Dome on March 11, 2013 in Tokyo, Japan.

David J. Phillip / AP

Atlanta Braves outfielder Jason Heyward catches a ball during a spring training workout on Friday, Feb. 15, 2013, in Kissimmee, Fla.

Steve Nesius / Reuters

New York Yankees pitchers run during a workout at the team's spring training complex at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Fla., on Friday, Feb. 15.

A blue, undefinable sadness settles into me every February. I can almost feel it like an ache deep in my bones. It has a lot to do with the weather. The warm days of last summer are a distant memory, and even the good spirits of the holidays are starting to fade.

However, then the pictures from the first week of spring training come along, I’m reminded that soon a day will come when I’ll be able to sit in the sunshine, with a bag of sunflower seeds clutched in one hand and a cold drink in the other, as I cheer for our team when the players run onto the field.

That thought is all I need to get me to spring.

From SpringTrainingOnline.com:

Spring training is almost as old as baseball itself. The best evidence points to spring training first taking place in 1870, when the Cincinnati Red Stockings and the Chicago White Stockings held organized baseball camps in New Orleans. Other baseball historians argue that the Washington Capitals of the National League pioneered spring training in 1888, holding a four-day camp in Jacksonville, Fl.

By 1900, spring-training was firmly established as a baseball ritual, with most American and National League teams heading out of town so players could train and managers could evaluate. Small Florida and Arizona communities were suddenly known across the nation because of the allure provided by major-league baseball.

Fred Thornhill / Reuters

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher R.A. Dickey does push-ups as catcher Josh Thole offers encouragement at the team's spring training facility in Dunedin, Fla., on Thursday, Feb. 14.

Chris O'Meara / AP

Boston Red Sox manager John Farrell hits a ball to the infield during a workout on Friday, Feb. 15 in Fort Myers, Fla.

David J. Phillip / AP

Atlanta Braves outfielder Jason Heyward signs autographs for fans before a workout on Friday, Feb. 15, in Kissimmee, Fla.

Chris O'Meara / AP

Minnesota Twins pitching coach Ron Anderson watches as Glen Perkins throws during a spring training workout on Friday, Feb. 15 in Fort Myers, Fla.

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Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP

San Francisco Giants pitcher Sergio Romo looks up as confetti falls during the baseball team's World Series victory parade in San Francisco on Oct. 31.

Robert Galbraith / Reuters

Cousins Reagan Hagerstrand and Ryan Magnani react as they are lifted above the crowd during the Giants' World Series winners parade along Market Street in San Francisco on Oct. 31.

Robert Galbraith / Reuters

Thousands of fans resplendent in orange and black choked downtown San Francisco's largest thoroughfare on Wednesday, noisily celebrating the Giants' second World Series baseball title in three years.

Jeff Chiu / AP

San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy holds the World Series trophy as confetti falls during the baseball team's World Series victory parade.

Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP

San Francisco Giants fans cheer during the team's World Series baseball victory parade on Oct. 31.

Associated Press reported: Orange-and-black clad hordes flooded the streets of San Francisco on Wednesday for a ticker-tape parade celebrating the World Series champion Giants.

Tens of thousands of people decked out in the team's holiday-appropriate colors stood 30 deep behind barriers, climbed trees and mounted rooftops along the city's main commercial street to watch their favorite players wave from individual convertibles.

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• Is Giants manager the game's best?
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Stephen Lam / Reuters

A baseball fan sits on a light post in celebration outside AT&T Park after the San Francisco Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers to win the MLB World Series baseball championship, in San Francisco on October 28, 2012.

The Giants capped a wild post-season ride by beating the Tigers 4-3 in 10 innings on Sunday to complete a four-game sweep and be crowned World Series champions for the second time in three years. 

Take a look at the post-game reactions and read Ray Ratto's analysis of the Giants, who he describes as "the new platinum standard of modern baseball".

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Photos by Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP

Washington Nationals first baseman Adam LaRoche is doused as he is interviewed by a television reporter, right, during the Nationals' celebration after clutching the National League East division title following their baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies in Washington on Oct. 1, 2012.

Hardball Talk’s D.J. Short reports:

It didn’t happen exactly the way the Nationals would have drawn it up, but they’ll definitely take it.

The Braves fell 2-1 to the Pirates tonight, ensuring the Nationals their first-ever National League East title. The news of the Braves’ loss flashed on the scoreboard at Nationals Park after the bottom of the eighth inning, which was met with pandemonium in the stands and a celebration in the dugout. The Nationals ended up losing 2-0 to the Phillies, but it was almost secondary to the buzz in the air and in the dugout.

Washington Nationals fans celebrate after the Nationals clutched the National League East division title Monday night.

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Adam Hunger / Reuters

New York Yankees left fielder Ichiro Suzuki makes a leaping catch against the Oakland Athletics during the tenth inning of their MLB American League baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York, on Saturday, Sept. 22, 2012.  

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Denis Poroy / Getty Images

Yasmani Grandal #12 of the San Diego Padres wipes shaving cream off his face after the Padres beat the Atlanta Braves 3-0 at Petco Park in a baseball game on August 27, 2012 in San Diego, Calif.

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