Opening Day: The Aftermath

From the reaction of fans, talk radio hosts and writers in both the "traditional" media and the blogosphere, the sky is already falling in on the Sox championship dreams after yesterday's disheartening opening loss.

Curt Schilling is taking the brunt of the abuse, which is somewhat deserved and definitely not unexpected given the merciless nature of Red Sox Nation, for everything from his blog to his caring more about a contract extension than winning games. Callers to WEEI have labeled him a "mediocre pitcher", and it is blatantly obvious that members of the traditional media, i.e. newspapers and newscasts, dislike the notion of Curt keeping a running diary of his life while he is supposed to be giving his all in attempting to win another championship for Boston.

Let me just say a couple of things here:

1.) opening day is meaningless. It is another game that is hyped beyond belief because it is the one day of the year that every team is in the playoff race, where every team is on a level playing field yet still in spring training mode, therefore guaranteeing anything can happen.

2.) keeping a blog is not about to affect Schill's pitching any more than stumping for politicians, calling in to sports talk radio shows or sparring with opposing players/mangers has for the last few years. The guy is a different kind of ace, the anti-Steve Carlton, who craves the spotlight, the media attention, and all the accoutrements that come with being a World Series hero twice over and a surefire Hall of Famer. So let Curt Be Curt, and at least wait until he suffers few more embarrassing losses before getting on his case

Coming on the heels of the first loss and with an off day today I though now would be a good time to go over my Top 10 questions surrounding this Sox team going into the 2007 season. Plus I sifted through my notes and realized I forgot to do it before the season.

1.)How will Daisuke Matsuzaka adjust to MLB & the USA?
This guy has about 7 or 8 different pitches, so it will be up to major league hitters to adjust to him as much as anything. Plus he is about as calm a newcomer as you'll ever see, and his easy going demeanor and lack of understanding of the English language will only help him when it comes time to deal with the Boston fans & media. If anyone can easily adapt to a new country & league, it's Dice-K. Expect 18 wins, 250+Ks and an ERA in the high 2.00s/low 3.00s.

2.)WWJDDD?
In case you didn't bring your hip slang dictionary those initials stand for What Will J.D. Drew Do?, and next to Dice-K that is the most talked about subject involving this team in the offseason. That's what happens when you spend $70 mil on a guy who is perceived to be an injury-prone player who lacks the desire necessary to play in Fenway.

But in my opinion Drew is in the perfect situation: he's not being counted on to be "the man", he will have a bunch of guys hitting ahead of him who will be on base a lot, ensuring that he sees plenty of quality pitches, and his perceived lack of mental toughness and psychical stamina are things that are going to drive him to be the best player he can be.

Or he'll be a complete bust. But I pick A.

3.)Who's gonna close?
As I said, this list was culled from my pre-season notes. Thanks to Mr. Papelbon's largess, this question has been resolved. Move along.

4.)Can Schill stay healthy and still be effective?
Boy I wish I had answered this one before yesterday. Despite the opening day horror show I'm going to give this one a yes. He still has the talent, desire and health to do what he needs to do, but judging by yesterday Schill's best at his advanced age might not be good enough against some of the tougher batters in the league. Can he still be a dominant starter? Doubtful. But he can be an effective one, and as long as he is still wanting to go out there and try to get guys out I;m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt that he can still do it with regularity. Yesterday's outing non withstanding.

5.)Will Gopherball Beckett keep the ball in the yard?
Tough one here because the man is first & foremost a fireballer, and by definition fireballers tend to give up a lot of homers. But if new pitching coach John Farrell can get Beckett to stop relying on his fastball so much, especially early in games & counts, he should cut down from his league-leading total of 36 from 2006.

6.)Will Lowell repeat or regress?
He was the throw in player in the Beckett deal because Florida wanted to unload his inflated salary ($9 mil) and apparently declining bat. All Lowell did in his first season in Boston was play stellar third base, tear the cover off the ball for the first three months of the season, rip 47 doubles and knock in 80 runs while batting .287 and endeared himself to the Fenway faithful.

But can he keep it up, or will he regress back to his 2005 form, when he batted .236 with only 58 knocked in?

I doubt he will be able to duplicate his success of 2006; I think a lot of that had to do with proving to everyone that he was better than a throw-in due to an albatross contract, so that motivation will be gone, and he is a year older (now 33.) I think Mike will regress somewhat, possibly batting in the .270s with 35 or so doubles and 65 knocked in, but he will still play a mean hot corner and be a fan favorite because of his work ethic, attitude, and desire to win.

7.)Can Coco come back from an injury-plagued 2006?
There is less pressure on Coco this year because he won't have to worry about hitting leadoff now that Lugo is here. Yet less pressure in Coco's situation still qualifies as a ton of pressure. That's what happens when you are expected to replace a key cog from a championship team, and after breaking his finger last April, Crisp never really got a chance to do that.

The Epstein, who took a gamble on believeing that Coc could replace Demon's productivity in center/leadoff, admitted in a WEEI interview last month that Coco was "90-95% affected by the injury" last season. He'll get his chance tp prove his boss right this year, but anything less than a .280 average, 20-30 steals and superb defense in center will get the man with the cute name on the next bus out of Beantown.

8.)How will Papelbon adjust to the rotation?
See #3

9.)How long before MannyBeingManny rears it's ugly, dreadlocked head?
The over/under is usually the All Star Break, so I'm gonna play it safe and go with that answer.
Unless you count the car & grill auctions, but that was just MBM, Spring Training Edition.

10.)Can Papi put together another MVP-like season?
Unless he decided to alter his diet, swing, or training regimen there is absolutely no reason why Big Papi should not put up comparable numbers to what he has done for the last 3 seasons, meaning an average of 47 homers, 141 RBIs, a .280-.300 average and a slugging percentage over .600. As long as ManRam is hitting behind him Papi will continue to see enough pitches to put up those lofty numbers, and as long as he does that the Sox will be right in the hunt to play in late October.

Did I kill enough time/make everyone forget about that ugly loss for a while? Good. Now let's have them get back on the field and show those Royals which team has the superior players, management, and payroll!