The first weekend in April has always been my favorite time of the year.  Any sports fan has plenty to pay attention to.  Living in a true seasonal climate, it also means the end of snow and cold, as the mercury rises and the barometer falls.  Look at all that is happening in the upcoming week:

• Major League Baseball kicks off a new season this Sunday night.  Those few months we have no baseball just suck to me.  Anyone reading this is probably in a fantasy league and shares my sentiments.
• NCAA Final Four and Finals come to a dramatic end within the week.  It’s been a great season for college basketball and the entire country is engrossed in this years tournament.  There are four pretty good teams left, so it will be interesting to say how it plays out.
• NBA regular season ends April 15.  As a Cavs fan, I wished it ended sooner to ensure home court right through the finals.  There are still unclaimed playoff spots and a bunch of shuffling for seeds to take place, so the drama will captivate fans as the season winds down.
• NHL regular season ends April 12.  Same as basketball, many teams still have a chance to make the playoffs or improve their seeding with the few remaining games.
• The Masters starts next week.  Any casual golf fan will be curious to see if Tiger can keep the momentum from his victory last weekend.  This is always another one of those “Spring is officially here” events that is not hard to watch on a warm Sunday evening.
• Wrestlemania XXV is Sunday.  Maybe not technically a sport, but rather “sports entertainment” as Vince McMahon has called it.  Regardless of whether you like it or not, the PPV buy rate is astronomical every year and this year might even break some records.

Don’t forget the NFL draft is not far away either!  I just love April!