15 overreactions after Opening Day
Going into Opening Day, everybody is on equal footing at 0-0, and anything can happen. Coming out of Opening Day, everybody is either 1-0 and printing World Series tickets or 0-1 and crawling into a corner.
That's how it feels, at least. We know better than to read too much into a single baseball game in a 162-game season, but, hey, we're human. We can't help ourselves.
In that vein (and not to be taken too seriously), here are 15 Opening Day overreactions (one for each game) that some of you have certainly had cross your mind.
1. Other than the fact that he'll be hosting a track meet every fifth day, will be routinely striking out in the No. 8 with runners in scoring position and is now a full-fledged fly-ball pitcher, Jon Lester should be worth every penny of the $155 million the Cubs invested in him. Wait 'til next year!
2. Bad news: Sir Didi Gregorius -- who is literally no Derek Jeter -- got thrown out trying to steal third with two outs in the eighth. Good news: He's still faster than Masahiro Tanaka's four-seamer.
Video: TOR@NYY: Martin cuts down Gregorius to end the 8th
3. The Tigers better lock up David Price before he wins his second American League Cy Young Award and becomes baseball's first $300 million pitcher.
4. This will be the year the Rockies, on the heels of their 10-0 thumping of the Brewers at Miller Park, actually score even more runs on the road than they do at Coors Field.
5. The Red Sox, with Clay Buchholz atop the rotation, have absolutely, positively no need for Cole Hamels. Especially if he's going to pitch like he did against Boston.
6. Travis Snider -- he of the diving catch, the bullet throw to the plate and the three hits -- is the greatest under-the-radar Orioles player since Steve Pearce, who, come to think of it, is still a pretty great under-the-radar Orioles player.
Video: BAL@TB: Snider makes a diving catch in the 6th
7. Matt Harvey? Max Scherzer? Pfft. The true ace of the National League East is a svelte young man by the name of Bartolo "Boogie" Colon, who, one mammoth blast from Bryce Harper aside, has us wondering if the injury-depleted Nats have the bats to be the 100-win dynamo they're prescribed to be. Oh, and put 37-year-old Buddy Carlyle down for 37 saves.
Video: NYM@WSH: Colon strikes out eight, allows one run
8. Mike Moustakas finally went oppo boppo for the Royals? Alex Rios is resurrected? One way or another, Steve Balboni's club-record 36-homer season is not long for this world.
9. The big-contract pressure is getting to Giancarlo Stanton, who ran into an out on the bases and came up empty in the clutch. I'll even bet he was the one who asked to leave the Marlins Park roof open.
10. Todd Frazier hits harder than Joe Frazier.
Video: PIT@CIN: Frazier jacks a three-run shot for the lead
11. Clayton Kershaw has a 5.30 ERA over his past three starts (counting the postseason). Let us all pause to remember and reflect on what a great pitcher he once was. Oh, and while we're at it, let's see if the Padres will give Matt Kemp back to the Dodgers.
12. It's like we said all winter long: The Mariners pushed themselves over the top when they added the big game-changing bat of Seth Smith.
13. Apparently Corey Kluber forgot to negotiate run support into his five-year contract extension. Dallas Keuchel looked like an early AL Cy Young Award candidate. Or at worst, a potential ZZ Top fill-in.
Video: CLE@HOU: Keuchel throws seven scoreless
14. Actually, forget Keuchel. Sonny Gray, backed by a sensational infield defense where ground balls go to die, is your AL Cy Young Award favorite. His WAR will be better than that of Lester and Jeff Samardzija combined and -- bonus -- he will inspire E.J. James' next novel, "25 Wins of Gray."
15. With a suddenly shaky middle-relief situation and ongoing injury concerns elsewhere in the rotation, it looks like Madison Bumgarner, one way or another, is going to have to appear in every single game for the San Francisco Giants. Crazy thing is, he might actually be up for it.