Game #1

CARDINALS 11, REDS 6

I realize that I stopped updating for Spring Training, but that doesn't matter anymore.  It's Opening Day! It's time to REALLY get the blog going!

BOXSCORE  (courtesy of stltoday.com, only because mlb.com is being obnoxious. >__>)

It was just nice to be watching baseball again. REAL baseball.  Baseball that actually means something.  I've had enough of that Spring Training crap.  I love the opening Monday of the baseball season.  Every team is 0-0, the Royals are just as good as the Yankees (and still are, as both teams are 0-1).  The Pirates are just as good as the Phillies (again, still are, each team is 1-0).  It's a brand new season for everybody.

But we don't care about the rest of those teams.  This is about the birds on the bat! The Cardinals couldn't have started the season any better.  Though not masterful, Chris Carpenter pitched like an ace.  Carp only gave up two runs on five hits, and both runs came off of solo home runs.  Hey, if you're going to get hurt, the solo shot is the easiest way to do it!  Good ol' Scott Rolen hit one of those and could have had two if it weren't for an awesome catch by Colby Rasmus.  It was probably the best play he's made since becoming a major leaguer.  Rasmus, who also homered in the game, is showing every sign that he will not suffer through the BS myth called the "sophomore slump."  He's been playing improved center field since the start of Spring Training, and he doesn't appear to be slowing down at all offensively.  He's going to have a good year.

You know who else might, just maybe, have a pretty good year in 2010?  I have a crazy hunch that Albert Pujols will put up respectable numbers this season.  I know, I know.  I can be daring sometimes.  But, hey, two home runs in the first game isn't too bad.  Could the Machine finally reach that 50 mark this year?  I think it's about damn time.

I'm sure a lot of your were surprised by Yadier Molina even being in the lineup today.  I was too, and I'll be honest, I wasn't completely comfortable with the decision to let him play this early.  Yes, I know he had good results from previous batting practice sessions, but I was just skeptical of how the catching position would wear on him with his oblique problem.  And even after today, it still could come back to bother him.  It could only be a matter of time, but what do I know?  Maybe it won't come back.  I'm just looking at this from a cautious perspective.  Either way, I am now more than confident that he is already healthy enough to hit.  A grand slam in the ninth to put the game out of reach certainly helps.  It was Yadi's first career grand slam, and this, paired with Pujols's two home runs, resembles something very familiar.

On Opening Day for the 2006 season, the Cardinals were playing the Phillies in Philadelphia.  Pujols had a two home run day, and though it wasn't hit by Yadier Molina, a grand slam was hit by a Cardinal player (Scott Rolen).  Ironically enough, the very same Scott Rolen did hit a home run in today's game (as mentioned before).  To go along with that, it was a game started by Chris Carpenter, who allowed two home runs in that game, too! *Gasp* Could this be a parodox? IS IT A SIGN???

...

...Probably not.  But, hey, it's worth building optimism.  I hope you all are as optimistic as I am about the season.  You won't be disappointed.

If you want to check out the boxscore of the 2006 opener and make sure I'm not making stuff up, be my guest.  (this one courtesy of Baseball Reference.)