Opening Day

Today was "officially" Opening Day! (I happen to consider when they open in Oakland opening day but the games this week still count.) It was exciting to see Ellis open the game with a home run which makes him the official first home run hitter of the 2008 season. The A'S jumped out on top with a 2-0 lead which looked promising I must say. But one should never get their hopes up to early where the 2008 A'S are concerned. Blanton looked good early on in the game while Matsuzaka did not. "The A's took advantage of Boston starter Daisuke Matsuzaka's early command issues, taking a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. After Mark Ellis lined a one-out solo homer into the bleachers in left-center, Matsuzaka walked Daric Barton, hit Jack Cust with a pitch, uncorked a wild pitch and loaded the bases by walking Brown before Barton scored on a groundout by Crosby" (Athletics website) Blanton on the other hand was very economical posting only 69 pitches through five innings. The sixth inning is where things got rough for Blanton and the bullpen came in to "rescue" the game.
Boston went to their bullpen in the bottom of the sixth and the A'S went ahead again 4-3. The next 2 1/3 innings went swimmingly for the bullpen but things went sour when Huston Street entered the game. Huston happens to be one of my favorite players on the A'S and not just because he is one of the few regulars remaining. When he won Rookie of the Year he also won Oakland hearts and has been an amazing closer for only being in his early twenties. (Warning this blog is not objective. I am a fan with favorites and dislikes so if you want objectivity read the daily paper not this blog). Last year was a little tough with his injured Ulnar nerve but I hope he can maintain his save level previous to last year. He is fifth in the book of closers with the most number of saves for his age but also acquired 20 blown saves last year. Today can be added to the blown saves list. Moss hit a home run off Street n the ninth to make the game go into extra innings and the tenth inning was no prettier. The A'S ended up loosing the game 6-5 and the season is beginning to look a tad bleak. They did have a double and two singles in the tenth showing they won't give up easily however there are some players that I worry about.

There were players today that did not perform up to standards and that worries me. Cust in particular is a worry for me because he is either hitting home runs or striking out. He did the latter today and I wonder about his amazing performance last year and if he can sustain it over an entire season. I am most excited to see how Harden does in his first outing back as a starter. Last year I thought he should be moved to the bullpen thinking his starting days were over but I would love for him to prove me wrong.