Opening Day.... for a baseball fan, there's nothing like it... the smell of hot dogs and popcorn, the sound of the crowd, the crack of the bat on a fresh baseball...

The temperature doesn't really matter on a day like today, but as us here in the Northeast know, this Winter/Spring has been crazy! But it doesn't matter, BASEBALL IS HERE!

The view from home plateApril 8, 2016. McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, RI.

As a photographer, our job is to cover the game visually, freezing that moment in time that can be remembered. For myself, I love to have the fans see what they can't see: behind the scenes before and after the game, dugout interaction with the players, or the reaction from a player after they didn't do so good behind the plate or in the field. With the extended access we have, it's our duty to bring the fans the game from every angle we can.

Dugout requirements...April 8, 2016. McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, RI. Cleaning home plateApril 8, 2016. McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, RI. The grounds crew at McCoy Stadium has to be the hardest working crew in Minor League Baseball. Just 3 days before Opening Day there was snow on the field, and then Opening Day had to be postponed one day due to extremely heavy rain. But by gametime, the field was perfect! The fans don't usually see how hard they work to get the field ready.

And then, of course, is the game! The fans are excited for the start of the baseball season, but so are the players. And again, it's up to us to give to the fans a view of what they might have missed, and to capture the action for years to come. And who knows, today's player could be tomorrow's superstar!

Andy Burns tries tagging out Justin Maxwell stealing second baseApril 8, 2016. McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, RI.

Sam Travis and Sean Coyle narrowly avoiding a collision at home plate chasing a pop-upApril 8, 2016. McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, RI.

Oh... and as I start my 40th or so year of visiting McCoy Stadium, it's great to give back, even though it's only something as simple as photography. As a photographer, we really aren't supposed to show support for any team we cover, but for the PawSox, I can be usually be seen doing some mental fist-pumping...

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