It's arguably the time of the year that's most fun if you're a baseball fan.
I personally do not consider myself in that number. I appreciate the game, but ultimately have crippled myself with too short of an attention span to fully enjoy the sport.
Regardless, whether you're a fan or an admirer, there's no doubt that this is the best time of the year for America's pass time.
College baseball's regular season is over, Major League Baseball's is beginning to hit its stride and before we know it we will be back in Omaha for the College World Series.
The NCAA baseball tournament is one of those formats that just works at all levels.
Sixteen sites play host to 64 teams and after one weekend of double-elimination play the field is reduced to 16.
Another round then gives us our field for the CWS and before we know it, it's over.
However, here in Louisiana there are a couple of vital storylines to pay attention to as conference tournaments go on this week and lead into next weekend's Regionals.
The state's arguably two best teams, Louisiana and LSU, have taken two very different paths to their conference tournaments and will now offer an interesting case study in philosophies.
The Ragin’ Cajuns have been a rock-solid outfit all season that are led by the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year in shortstop Kyle DeBarge and L.P. Langevin.
The Cajuns won 40 regular season games, steamrolled its conference to a regular season championship and enter the SBC tournament as one of its favorites.
Meanwhile, life hasn't been so easy in Baton Rouge.
The Tigers, by their standard, limped through a 36-20 regular season and posted a 13-17 conference record on their way to the No. 11-seed in the SEC baseball tournament.
They're going to take the long way to a title and started its path with a 9-1 defeat of Georgia and at the time this column is being written will next face No. 3-seed Kentucky at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday in the double-elimination format.
The ultimate question being answered as we head into regional play will be this one.
After the Cajuns rolled through the regular season and LSU limped through its own, will LSU have the gas in the tank to make a serious run in both the SEC and NCAA tournaments?
And if they do, will it ultimately become a lesson that proves that what you do in the regular season ultimately doesn't matter if you have the goods at the right time?
It's a dangerous slope to play on, especially in baseball. However, it's a model that has become increasingly popular and effective at other levels in other sports.
Some NBA teams famously do just enough to get into the playoffs and let the talent take over from there. The same could be said for the Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL this past season when questions of whether the team's run was over turned into talks of a potential dynasty.
But, when the smoke clears we will know soon enough.
I have a feeling LSU may run out of gas. But, if it doesn't we're setting baseball up for its own unique philosophical debate soon enough.
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