Thoughts on the First Few Days of the New Season

The first few days of the 2009 MLB season is in the books, and it's been an interesting few days indeed. A lot has already happened, but, obviously, it's hard to tell much of anything when most teams have still only played one game. You wouldn't judge a football team for the season six minutes into the first quarter, would you? Didn't think so. But still ...

I don't understand what the big deal about booing Mark Teixeira is. Peter Gammons was all sorts of upset about it on ESPN Monday night, and it was the subject of multiple articles in newspapers around the country (Two are here and here. Read the comments on the first if you like to hate on either Yankees or Orioles fans.). "Scum!" "Sellout!" "Corporate whore!" yell angry Baltimore fans. "I like money" whimpers a defeated Teixeira back. Look, I understand Teixeira's decision. To sign with the Orioles, he was going to give up playing for a bona fide contender, as well as sacrificing over $4 mil a year for seven years. 

But that being said, if you're not an Oriole fan, put yourself in one's shoes. The team you support has a proud history, but for the past ten years, has been on Royals-Pirates level. Every year you have to play the Yankees for 19 games, and every year you lose most of them. When you play the Yankees in Baltimore, there's usually about 75% Yankees fans in the crowd. But it's opening day. You saw the Rays go from last to first last year, why not you this year? There's a renewed interest in the team from the exciting young hitters they have, and the exciting young pitchers that probably won't appear until August or September. There's reason - albeit very little - for optimism. And up first is the hometown guy who spurned your team's offer to play for the most hated of all teams. If I were there, I would have booed him until I was hoarse, too. ESPN needs to get over itself. 

Now that that rant is over ... Johan Santana (pictured, right) is going to win a lot of games this year. Not that that's unusual, but when I say a lot, I mean 20+. If he gets decent run support and is throwing his stuff at an average level for him, the Mets are going to be virtually unbeatable. Putz in the 8th and K-Rod in the 9th is an absolutely nasty back end. It won't matter unless starts 2-5 of the Mets rotation step up, but you can virtually pencil in a "W" every time Santana takes the mound. 

Keeping it in the NL East, the Braves should take a lot more out of beating the Phillies 8-1 in the first two games than the Phillies should. The Braves want to believe they're a contender in the NL East this year, and theres no better way to bolster their confidence than by running over the defending champs in the first two games, holding that vaunted lineup to only one run in 18 innings. The Phillies and their fans have no reason to fret, though. They know they're going to hit this year; there's too much talent there to deny that. The starting pitching has been poor, but the bullpen has pitched admirably. It would have been nice to keep the momentum from last October going, but it's no reason for alarm. 

And just a few quick hits ...

Ouch, Tyler. The Nats begin the season at 0-3, losing all three games to the Marlins, the only team in the division they had a chance to finish above. 

Ken Griffey, Jr., in a Mariners uniform again, is awesome. How could his home run not remind you of the old days? It's good for Griffey, good for the M's, and good for baseball. 

(Photo Credit: AP)

Never Count the Yankees Out

After a $160 million contract to southpaw C.C. Sabathia, few thought the Yankees would be seriously contenders for any big-name hitter available on the free agent market - especially not Mark Teixeira, the top prize.

For weeks, the media followed the frenzy around Teixeira and his agent, Scott Boras. Rumors flew around daily and teams entered and left the sweepstakes. Today, December 23rd, was believed to be the day Teixeira would announce his decision. The Nationals and Red Sox were the only teams left in the running; the Orioles, Teixeira's hometown team, had fallen out last week and the Angels bowed out on Sunday.

Nationals fans anxiously awaited his decision. If they could sign him, they would have the first base position locked down for the next 8 seasons. They'd have a local hero who would be the face of the franchise and lead the young team into the playoffs in the foreseeable future.

Red Sox fans also anxiously awaited his decision. Teixeira would hold down the 1st base position, allowing them to move Kevin Youkilis to 3rd and possibly move Mike Lowell for pitching. He'd hit .300, 30 home runs, and drive in 120 runs. He'd play gold glove defense. He'd lead the Red Sox back to the World Series.

The Yankees, naturally, were brought up as a possibility in the days leading up to Teixeira's decision. No one seriously expected them to indulge in another $150+ million contract, but if there's anything I've learned in my time as a baseball fan, it's that you can never, ever count the Yankees out.

And, fittingly, the Yankees swooped in at the last minute and added 20 million dollars to the Nationals offer of 8 years, $160 million. Boras was ecstatic. For weeks he had clearly been using the Nationals and Orioles to get bigger-market teams in and it is believed the took the Red Sox final offer and shopped it to the Yankees. Teixeira finally had an offer from the team he wanted all along.

As a Nationals fan, I am extremely disappointed. I was optimistic that the Nationals would find a way to lock up the 1st baseman but knew Scott Boras was going to drag the Yankees and Red Sox into the fold. The chances were slim at best, despite Teixeira's desire to play close to home. Still, Teixeira fit too well and the possibility of a franchise player like that was enough to get fans of a 100 loss team excited.

That said, I am not about to call the Lerners cheap, or Jim Bowden a terrible GM (that may be up for debate, but for other reasons). The Lerners showed that they will spend money on a franchise player. Now, they need to look for "plan b," which could be a combination of Adam Dunn and Orlando Hudson or a trade for a first baseman.

Either way, they need to do something this offseason. Nationals fans need something to look forward to and I need something to watch for when I head to Viera, Florida for spring training.

Teixeira Hysteria (updated)

With star pitcher C.C. Sabathia signing the biggest contract for a pitcher in history Wednesday morning, Major League Baseball's winter meetings were officially underway.

And with the top prize off the market, all the attention has been placed on 28-year old Mark Teixeira. The first baseman - a native of Severna Park, Maryland - was coveted by many teams before this week, but no offers were made.

On Wednesday, that all changed. For hours, there was rampant speculation about who had offered Teixeira a contract, and for how much. Just about every expert predicted Teixeira would sign with the L.A. Angels, the team who traded for him at this past trading deadline. The first offer he recieved, however, was from the Washington Nationals, a team rumored to have interest all offseason long. Their offer (8 years, $160 million) is still the largest offer on the table, but many believe Baltimore Orioles owner Peter Angelos covets the first baseman so much that he will offer a contract around $200 million, exactly what Teixeira's agent Scott Boras wants.

The breakdown of the offers, via MLBtraderumors.com:

Nationals: 8 years, $160 million
Orioles: 7 years, $140-150 million
Angels: (updated) 8 years, $160 million (possibly more)
Red Sox: not concrete numbers

According to the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles are unwilling to up their offer, despite not being the highest. This could just be a smokescreen, but it's very possible the Orioles believe Teixeira would take a hometown discount.

The Angels, apparently, will not offer an 8th year, and will look towards trading options (Paul Konerko, Jermaine Dye, or Adrian Beltre) or free agent Raul Ibanez if Boras will not budge from his 8-year contract demands. It is rumored the Angels have already dropped out of the race in favor of Ibanez or a trade.

That really just leaves the Nationals and Red Sox. Let me break down why I think Teixeira should sign with the Nationals.

First, the Nationals are offering the most money. If he wants to follow the money, right now, the Nationals have the most of it.

Second, the Nationals are close to home. It has been reported that his wife wants to stay on the East Coast (we saw how that worked for Sabathia, but in this case, an East-Coast team has a competitive offer). The Red Sox are also on the East Coast, but if you're going to sign with an Eastern team, why not play 30 minutes from your hometown?

Third, Teixeira would be the face of the franchise. In Boston, he would be just another cog in the machine, sharing facetime with David Ortiz, Josh Beckett, Jason Bay, Dice-K, etc. In D.C., he would be top dog. He would be their franchise player. Ryan Zimmerman would become the #2 offensive option and the burdens the young third baseman carries as the franchise player would be made easier.

And fourth, the Nationals are building to be a dynasty in the N.L. East. Their rotation is young and their top prospects are just beginning to see the major leagues. Thier lineup has 5 players under the age of 26, and 2 more players - Austin Kearns and Josh Willingham - under the age of 30 (28 and 29, respectively). The only starter over the age of 30 is shortstop Christian Guzman, who turned 30 in March. Teixeira would stablize the first base position for the next eight years as the young team grows.

Mark Teixeira could sign with the Red Sox, or any other team for that matter. He has a much higher chance of winning a World Series in Boston or L.A. (or New York) than in Washington. But in D.C., he'd have a chance to lead a team to a championship. He'd be a fan favorite and a wonderful story.

Time will only tell if he does decide to sign with the Nationals. But for the first time, Nationals fans have a reason to be excited in December.

Update: According to mlb.com, the Angels have decided to up their offer to match the Nationals' offer. This makes it very interesting and now throws the Angels back into the mix. Also, there are no confirmed offers from the Red Sox...is their interest just a Scott Boras' creation, used to up to offers?

5 Things to Keep an Eye on

Sure, you have the NFL playoff races, but there's other things to keep an eye on this weekend. Here's five things I'll be paying attention to.

1. The Mark Teixeira sweepstakes. C.C. already went to the Yankees; everyone expected that. Teixeira, on the other hand, is a local boy. Both the Orioles and Nationals have expressed interest, and Teixeira has reciprocated with both. It will be interesting to see where Texeira ends up, and whether the local teams will be filling to fork over enough money to get him.

2. Maryland basketball: taking care of business. More on this later, but it's the worst time of the year for Maryland basketball. It's no longer the beginning of the season, so we're not really learning anything about the team. They no longer play anyone that will help their resume at the end of the year. It's full of Elons, Bryants, and Delaware States from here on out. None of these wins will help, but losses will devastate.

3. Pittsburgh-Baltimore: Will the emotions finally boil over? Both teams have been good all week. No players or coaches have expressed anything but mutual respect for the other team. You know it's just because they feel the eyes of Czar Goodell looking over them, though. I mean, after all, this is the same Ravens team with Bart Scott (pictured), who openly threatened to kill Hines Ward last year. It will be interesting to see whether all this emotion they're keeping inside will spill out onto the football field in terms of some 15-yard penalties.

4. Which team will get back on track: Dallas or New York? I have a feeling New York is going to destroy Dallas in this game, but that's just me. Everything I've ever said negative about Tony Romo (pictured) I will reverse if he managed to get the huge win this week. If not, I don't see Dallas winning another game. Conversely, New York has to show the league that they just ran into a Philadelphia team at the wrong time, and that the Giants are still the team to beat in this league, with or without Brandon Jacobs. We're going to learn something about both of these teams after this game.

5. We will immediately start to see the effects of the first big trade in the NBA. Forgive me, but I don't think the Wizards getting rid of Antonio Daniels for two guys who combine to average about 5 ppg is going to make that big of a difference. There was a trade that went down last night between the Bobcats and the Suns, though, that caught a lot of people's interest. Boris Diaw (pictured, left) and Raja Bell (two staples of Suns for the past few years) and Sean Singletary (whom Maryland fans know quite well) left for the Bobcats. In return, the Suns received Jason Richardson and Jared Dudley (also well known by Maryland fans). Steve Nash was visibly upset during last night's Suns-Lakers game. 

And yea, I just wrote about the NBA. 

(Photo Credits: AP)