The weather report for today is...awesome with a chance of more awesome.

I didn't grow up in Southern California but after 9 years in the South Bay, I certainly feel like a local now and I honestly can't believe how spoiled I've become about having incredible weather all the time.

Playing baseball on the East Coast - first in DC through the end of high school and then in college at Brown in Providence, RI - was not always easy. In both cities, for at least half the year, the weather was too cold, rainy, and snowy to even be outside. In fact, pre-season baseball practices at Brown took place at 6am on the recreational basketball courts in the student field house. I remember several occasions where we went outside to play a brief game of long toss with INCHES of snow on the ground. (In fact, my junior year, Dartmouth didn't get to play a single home game as their diamond was covered in ice the entire season!)

Last week, I spent a couple days in Las Vegas and while driving around I passed numerous baseball and softball complexes with players practicing in - I'm not exaggerating - 105 degree heat.

It's easy to love baseball in incredible climates like ours - almost everyday on the field feels like "vacation" weather. But in most parts of the country, the playing conditions are truly miserable a good amount of the time and I have a ton of respect for ballplayers who go to the field to get their work in on a daily basis in weather that most normal people would even venture outside in.

We shouldn't feel guilty about having great weather here and it doesn't mean that we love baseball less or don't have as much commitment to the game as players in different climates do, but I do think we can take a few minutes to be really thankful for how amazing our playing conditions are.

With Summer Camp already in full swing it's going to be easy for me to get wrapped up in the play on the field, the instruction, and the overall excitement of camp. So that I don't lose sight of the big picture, I've made a commitment to take a few minutes every day to just soak in the overall baseball experience we are so lucky to have - and I'm going to encourage all campers this summer to do the same.

Incredibly well-maintained fields in essentially perfect weather???

Nope, it does not get any better.