World. Class.

Ok, that's it. I can't hide behind the doubts anymore. I can't pretend to be only casually interested. I know there are injuries. I know that the fortunes of thirty major league clubs are hinging on the healthy return of their players. I know in the end the skeptics will call them nothing more than glorified exhibition games, but I'm sold.

The World Baseball Classic is a great idea.

I'm a teacher, and when I walked into my last period class today I knew that I couldn't stay hidden inside the shell of my language classroom. I quieted the students and turned on the television. With the Dominican Republic playing against Venezuela, Miguel Tejada, Albert Pujols and David Ortiz stepped in against Johan Santana.

Baseball, meaningful baseball, is here in the spring.

There really is more to this whole tournament than money. Of course MLB and the various international baseball federations are going to stand to profit from all of this, but I'm going to go with the softer, less rational part of my psyche and say that deep down, this is just making baseball what it deserves to be: global. It has a long way to go before it gets into the same solar system as soccer, but the WBC is a step in the right direction.

And if you're a fan, how can you be against it? So what if you won't see Derek Jeter or David Ortiz in a spring training game? If you want to see them that badly, go to one of the first round games. Heck, you're gonna be in either Florida or Arizona anyways, what's a little but of a drive? This is about national pride, about bragging rights. The Carribbean and Asian countries know this, and they know that they have more than a good shot at winning, and despite all the media claiming to the contrary, the American players do seem to be excited about this. You slap on the red white and blue on your chest, and you're damn right you're gonna wanna go out there and win.

So just one more thing: Go USA.