Opening Day 2008--Observations From Cooperstown

The traditional Opening Day finally arrived on Monday--though it would have been difficult to tell based on the cold, damp air of Cooperstown. (Basically, we experienced the same weather that wiped out Opening Day at Yankee Stadium.) In spite of my usual complaints about the climate, games did take place throughout the country, including a smattering of matchups that made their way onto my television. So away we go...

Johan Santana, David Wright, and Jose Reyes all played the way the Mets expect them to, resulting in a 7-2 thrashing of the skinflint Marlins. After Santana left with seven innings of two-run, eight-strikeout ball, Willie Randolph did some mixing and matching with his bullpen, turning not to Aaron Heilman but giving Matt Wise and Jorge Sosa a taste of the eighth inning. Wise looked so-so, but Sosa pitched well, as Randolph searches for some bullpen answers during Duaner Sanchez' latest stint on the disabled list...

As for the Marlins, they continue to look shaky defensively, as they did most of 2007. More importantly, they gave the Opening Day ball to Mark Hendrickson, a Lee Guetterman throwalike who should be pitching in middle relief, not anchoring the rotation. Without much established pitching and without the booming bat of Miguel Cabrera, it looks to be a long season in south Florida...

The Cubs and Brewers played one of the most entertaining games of Opening Day, with each team's supposed relief ace blowing up in the ninth inning. We're only one game into the season--and the Cubs already have a closer controversy. Kerry Wood gave up three runs in the top of the ninth, which will fuel fan desires to see Carlos Marmol in the ninth-inning role. The Brewers' new relief ace, Eric Gagne, looked even worse than Wood. He couldn't throw strikes, walking his first two batters before grooving a fastball to Japanese sensation Fukudome (who looks like a thicker, more powerful version of Ichiro).For Red Sox fans, Gagne's performance was all too reminiscent of his second-half horror show in Boston. And to think that the Brewers spent $10 million on Gagne, who was far more concerned with the muddy mound and his own steamed-up glasses than he was with opposing Cubs batters. (An aside on Gagne: Could he make a semblance of an effort to wear his uniform properly? I'm all for players having a distinctive look on the field, but does Gagne need to wear pants that are three sizes too large? I mean, he had enough material with those trousers to make a couch! He also made no effort to tuck in his shirt, until the home plate umpire finally ordered him to do so several batters into his frightful inning of work. Looking distinctive and personal is one thing; looking like a complete slob is quite another. End of rant.)...

In between my usual Monday night fare of Medium (a terrific show, I might add), I watched bits and pieces of the opener between the Padres and Astros. Jake Peavy looked Cy Young unhittable over the first five innings, while Roy Oswalt struggled against what appears--at least on the surface--to be a popgun Padre offense. While the Padres have question marks in left, center, and at third base, they do have a legitimate star in Adrian Gonzalez. While the ESPN broadcasters compared him to Rafael Palmeiro, he reminds me more of a widebody version of Will "The Thrill" Clark. With that sweet swing, ability to hit to all fields, and raw straightaway power, Gonzalez could emerge as a serious MVP cancidate within the next two seasons...

Finally, I received a care package coinciding with Opening Day. Friend and fellow author Matt Silverman sent me copies of his three most recent projects--Mets By the Numbers, 100 Things Mets Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die, and Meet the Mets 2008. If you're a Mets diehard and are not yet familiar with Matt's work, you need to change that quickly. A talented writer, Matt has emerged as a print version of Howie Rose--an absolute Mets expert and historian. Thanks, Matt.