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As the month of madness dies down and days after the Mike Gansys, Taylor Coppenraths, and Maurice Agers of the world have torched my bracket, my love of sports begins to drift elsewhere. Don’t get me wrong, I will be watching the final four intently and cheering on the fighting Illini, but as the tourney draws to a close, my attention turns to opening day.
To me, opening day ranks right behind the first two days of the tournament as the greatest day in sports. The smell of hot dogs on the grill, spring in the air and a full slate of America’s pastime on television, it does not get any better than this. This year’s baseball season is no different; I anxiously await the start of the White Sox season, only to be fed up with their inconsistency come mid-July. There is something about this season that just seems to have a different way about it. While we are swept up in the controversy that is Barry Bonds sitting out the season, I say good riddance to one of the most stubborn and greatest player of all time. I am more anxious to see how steroids will affect the power hitters of the league and whether or not pitchers will benefit.
Can Jason Giambi live up to the expectations of the New York media? Probably not, if Cashman was confident in Giambi, why would he sign Tino Martinez to fill-in at first base.
Will Sammy Sosa benefit from the change of scenery? He can’t get much worse; Sosa was ridiculed and suffered under the heat of corking a bat and an injury-plagued season. Baltimore got a steal in Sosa, an aging slugger who now has something to prove, by only giving up Jerry Hairston and getting Chicago to foot the bill of Sosa’s massive contract, the Orioles should love slammin’ Sammy.
Will Randy Johnson and Carl Pavano be able to succeed in New York? Neither pitcher has ever been in the spotlight, let alone the New York spotlight. It will be tough not to succeed as a pitcher in New York, especially this year. If you look at their lineup from top to bottom, this lineup rivals that of murder’s row. Pavano and Johnson can afford to make a mistake, Johnson especially; can finally afford to not be perfect. New York can win and win effectively in ten to twelve run ballgames.
Can the Red Sox live up to the hype of being World Series champions and once again be a contender? With the pressure of 86 years and the Curse of the Bambino off their shoulders, this fun loving bunch can finally play pressure-free ball. The addition of Edgar Renteria adds even more potency to a lineup that was the deadliest in baseball last year, and unlike Nomar, Renteria is a gold-glove caliber shortstop. The losses of Pedro and Derek Lowe were promptly filled by Matt Clement, David Wells and Wade Miller. Not only did they not lose any depth, they add depth by adding these veteran arms.
Can the Chicago Cubs stay healthy and be the next team to end their curse? Already questions of health on the north side of Chicago have been raised. The Cubs did nothing in the off-season to fix their biggest problem, the bullpen. Joe Borowski was all set to retake the closers role from headcase LaTroy Hawkins, but a broken hand will sideline him for at least the first month. Kerry Wood’s and Mark Prior’s arms are on the fritz yet again, so it is looking more and more likely that Carlos Zambrano or Greg Maddux will get the opening day nod. The loss of Matt Clement to Boston forces the Cubs to throw either control-impared Ryan Dempster or Glendon Rusch into the fifth starter spot. The role is Rusch’s as he thrived in spot starts last year, but the Cubs are so thin in the pen, especially from the left handed side. The Cubs lost Sammy Sosa and Moises Alou from the outfield this off-season. They replaced them with Jerry Hairston Jr. and strike out machine Jeromy Burnitz. Things don’t look to good on the North side.
Can young phenoms Guillermo Mota and Francisco Rodriguez step into the closers role and lead their teams to the playoffs? These guys have electric stuff; there is no question about that. We all know the heroics of K-Rod during Anaheim’s 2002 World Series run. He should have no problem closing out victories for my predicted World Series champion. Mota is a different story blowing four saves in eight chances last year. He has collapsed like a cheap card table in the past and this year, with the NL East being as competitive as it is, Florida will depend on Mota to win several games.
The 2005 season is shaping up to be an intriguing and controversial one. America’s pastime will be doing just that, going back to the past. With power numbers bound to go down, teams will have to win with pitching, speed and defense. I can’t say I can predict who wins, anyone can see that by looking at my bracket, all I can promise is that the 2592 game regular season will be very entertaining.
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