openning day is here. and the good guys won! cleveland beat the white sox 12-5. not just beat, dominated. 5-2 after the first. 9-2 after two. contreras is gone by this point. he did not retire a batter in the second before he was yanked from the game. 11-3 after the third inning. it stayed that way till the 8th. not to get too excited after the first game, but here are other great aspects of this game.

grady sizemore:
to say he struggled this spring is an understatement. he hit less than his bodyweight. a buck and a few bits of change. nary a word was said about it, which really worried me. so how does he do in the first game? hits a home run, on the second pitch of the game. espn's recap called this the turning point of the game. on the second pitch! he also singled, walked, and scored 3 runs. welcome to the regular season. i am glad all is well. i just wish you didn't have to scare me.

next up in the order, trot nixon:
many consider the signing of trot to be an unwise choice. his numbers have benn steadily declining over the years, as has been his health. it was reported that he was not ready health-wise to start the season. he seemed to struggle in the spring, i read. he responds with 3 hits, one being a double, and also scores 3 runs. of course he could break down later. hopefully not. but even if he does, we have depth. depth that has been challenged. if one of our many talented AAA or even AA outfielders get called up, they know they must put up some big numbers if they want to sick around. yes, it is pressure. but if a rook can't handle pressure, than he probably will not succeed.

travis hafner, aka pronk:
he is another one who struggled this spring. a low batting average, no home runs. he ends up also scoring 3 runs, collects two hits (both singles), and drives in one.

jhonny peralta:
we all know of his sophomore slump struggles. but everything you read on him this spring praised him. he came into camp in great shape, lost weight, gained quickness, had his eyes LASIC-ally corrected, his attitude is great, he is more open and receptive to his teammates, great stuff, more great stuff. his spring stats and defense were on par with the hype. so was today's game. he scored a run, had 2 singles which drove in 3 runs, and walked once. didn't hear anything about the D, but he had no errors and turned one DP with his new partner, josh barfield. by the way, they melded smoothly according to all reports.

speaking of, josh barfield:
in his first at bat, he hits a two run triple. as his first hit in an indians uniform.

the defnse:
no errors, one DP turned.

and most importantly, c.c.:
he got the W by pitching 6 innings. he gave up three runs. all came via 2 home runs allowed. he gave up 8 hits and walked one, striking out only 2 in 91 pitches. he did what he had to. chicago does have a great offense, i admit. he may not be 100%, but regardless, he found a way to win. he was handed an early lead, and he took care of it. i love it!

the bullpen looked good. borowski did give up 2 runs. i am sure he was just getting them out of the way. he allowed the first two batters to get on base, then he retired the next 3.

i know, i know, there are 161 games left. but for now, bask in all the positivity.

other highlights.

felix herandez:
just like jhonny, he is one another player who had a bad year last year. and just like jhonny, he is another player who everyone praised thisspring. he becomes the first pitcher since bob gibson over 40 years ago to not give up a run AND strike out 12 on openning day. all at the age of 20. wow!

ben sheets:
he pitches a complete game two hitter. after allowing a home run to jeff kent, he got tough. he retired the next 22 batters. it has been 15 years since a complete game 2 hitter or less was recorded on openning day (tom glavine also did the same back in 1995).

gary mattehews jr.:
i don't know if he took HGH or not. considering his come from nowhere year last year, one has to wonder. he got way too much from the angels, irregardless. i did not look up his game stats. what i did see was dirt on his jersey in the 8th. he has always been known for his D. defense and hustle are not affected by HGH.

boston red sox:
aided by gil meche, they were embarrassed by KC. curt schilling got roughed up. gil looked like an ace.

detroit lost, the d'backs won, and there was an extra inning game to boot.

what a great openning day!