MINNEAPOLIS — Hope springs eternal on baseball's Opening Day.
There's no panic or heartbreak yet. Instead, the belief by both players and fans that anything is possible.
Former Minnesota Twins pitcher Tom Hall remembers that Opening Day feeling.
Hall was a rookie pitcher for the Twins in 1969, and at age 21, stepped into the Opening Day spotlight.
Randy: What do you remember from your Opening Day start in 1969?
Hall: Well, to be frank with you, I don't remember too much. I was so nervous. Being out there on the mound in the major leagues, being a rookie, pitching -- a lot of stuff went through my mind. Hopefully, I could throw strikes and get people out, that was the main thing
So now, fast forward, 53 years and another Twins rookie pitcher gets the call on Opening Day — Joe Ryan.
Randy: What does it mean to be the Opening Day starter?
Ryan: I'm honored to get this nod and go out there and take Game 1. Talking about it now reminds me of my debut, I'm just trying to go out there and get a win for the team, pitch as long as I can and that's it.
Ryan made it to the majors last year, starting five game and pitching 26⅔ innings, which still makes him a rookie. Hall pitched 29 innings in 1968 before he got the ball for Opening Day in 1969.
Their paths to Opening Day, were eerily similar, so Hall had some advice for Ryan prior to taking the hill to start the 2022 season.
"Go out and don't try to overdue what you've been doing in order to get there, go out there and throw your main, No. 1 pitch, and don't try to be too fine at the plate," said Hall in a video message for Hall. "If you're getting people out by going up and in, down and away, consider doing that on the mound this time.
From one rookie pitcher to another, just hoping to get their team off to a great start....and hoping it's the start of a great career.
"I think just sticking with the plan, and keeping it simple is the goal," said Ryan.
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