Savoring April

Here’s why April rules: Because the Marlins can sit in first place for a few moments, even as they surrender 50 percent more runs than they score. (That’s what some walk-off dingers in the first couple of weeks will do for a team that figures to lose more than it wins.) And after seven games, with the Marlins leading their division, the team that claimed the two best erstwhile Marlins, Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, hadn’t won a single game.

What else makes April magical? Perennial bums Milwaukee, Baltimore, and Kansas City digging their fingernails into first place in their respective divisions. Marlins wunderkind Hanley Ramirez batting well over .400. And the Washington Nationals home fans christening their new stadium and season by proudly booing our cataclysmically inept imposter-cretin of a President when he threw out the ceremonial first pitch this year. Welcome the Nats in kind when they conclude a three-game series Sunday at 1:10 p.m. at Dolphin Stadium (2269 Dan Marino Blvd., Miami Gardens). Tickets start at $9 and are abundant at the gate, but if you’re one of them A-types, you can reserve them at florida.marlins.mlb.com, or by calling 954-523-3309.
Sun., April 20, 2008