Thoughts on Opening Game

So this opening game was bitter sweet.

First off, let's start by saying that it was the last opening game at Yankee Stadium. The majority of my hopes went towards the Blue Jays winning, but 10% of me wanted the Yankees to get the win, for nostalgic reasons. Yogi Bera threw out the first pitch.

The Yankees haven't lost an Opening Game at home in 10 years.

As for the Jays....

Clearly there has been some change in the attitude they take when coming to the plate, which can be attributed to their new hitting coach, as well as the guys who came to camp a few pounds lighter and nursing a few less injuries.

It was nice to see the Jays playing a different kind of ball. As has been predicted, they are getting more green lights to steal bases. Scutaro stole two on Posada, which was definitely nice to see.

Other highlights include...Aaron Hill's double, which Melky Cabrera tried to steal; Greg Zaun throwing out Derek Jeter at second. Last year the Jays were a pretty easy team to steal on, and Zaun takes the majority of the flack for it.

Yankee highlights, that I don't want to remember...Melky Cabrera making two highlight reel plays in a row in Center Field. One high at the wall, and one diving catch in left center field.
He also hit a home run (again bitter sweet, as he is on my fantasy team...only $4!)

Ecstein has a MAD stance. For a small guy he really tries to make himself look mean at the plate. Unfortunately he didn't do great in the lead off position tonight, but I'm not about to get worried after one game.

It was great to see Shannon Stewart back in the lineup. If you looked closely you could see that his batting helmet had number #4 (his number during spring training) but he has chosen to wear #23, his number last year in Oakland. Matt Stairs has number #24, which was his number from 1995-2002 with the Jays.

My only major criticism, where I did not see improvement, is the team's performance with RISP. They went 1 in 12 with runners in scoring position. That is a lot of missed opportunities for some run support. I am hoping to see some improvement over the next couple of weeks.

All in all the Jays put up a fight. If you compare the stats of Halladay and Wang they are pretty similar. Both pitched 7 solid innings, and unfortunately, the Jays lost by 1 run.

Getting pumped for Friday when I actually get to see them play in person, and wear my dress!!

Play ball!