MLB Minute - April 13 2009

Well folks, we have a week in the books thus far in the Major League Baseball season. Sure, you can sit there and say that a week's worth of baseball doesn't really give away much of the big picture, especially when you consider the season is 162 games, but there is still plenty to take away from the first week of the season.

Target Field Opener Is Shot In The Face To Contraction

The Twins opened Target Field yesterday to a sell-out crowd eager to see the return of outdoor baseball to the Twin Cities. On hand was Commissioner Bud Selig, who nine years ago had submitted the Twins for contraction along with the Montreal Expos. Seeing a beautiful ballpark being opened up by a team that has made the playoff five times since the contraction talks is a tremendous story. This is just a great sign of a community pulling together and rallying behind their team, and the team likewise giving back.

Long Season Ahead In Houston

The Houston Astros are the only team in the league to be without a victory after one week of play, but its not hard to see why. You try winning ballgames when your team has scored a grand total of 13 runs over the course of 20 games. Brad Mills is going to wish he stayed on as bench coach in Boston before this is over and done with. With age and a lack of a strong farm system, the Astros are in a team in a tough position. Let the Roy Oswalt and Carlos Lee trade talks begin.

Phillies Looking at Another Shot at The Championship

The Phillies are looking like the favorites for the World Series out of the gate. Leading the league is runs-scored with 50 and runs-allowed with 22 is a great start to their quest of reaching their third straight Fall Classic. Roy Halladay has made the transition to the National League exactly like most pundits thought and has already established himself as the favorite to unseat Tim Lincecum for the Cy Young.

Vernon Well Playing His Way Out of Toronto?

The Toronto Blue Jays have got to be psyched about Vernon Wells' start, having launched 5 home runs in the early going. Wells is player that the Jays will be looking at moving, but he'll need to keep lighting up the box scores to get teams to even nibble at the six years and $107 million remaining on his contract. Toronto isn't a team that is capable of eating a large chunk of that deal, so they'll have to hope someone jumps the shark and takes Wells off their hands before he settles back into regression.

Yanks Winning Despite Sluggers

The New York Yankees are celebrating their 27^th World Series title during their home opener today and currently sit at 4-2 to start the new season. Their pitching staff has been solid thus far, but currently the offense has seen little production from Alex Rodriguez and Mark Texeira, who entered Tuesday's action without a home run between them and only 7 RBI's total. Luckily, the offense has been carried by Robinson Cano, Jorge Posada, and Curtis Granderson thus far. That's a tough sign for opponents, as those players are likely to keep going when the big bats heat up.

Bullpens Costing Their Teams Early On

Teams aren't going to want to hear it, but relievers have been a major problem for contenders so far this season. Of teams with postseason dreams, the following are ranking the lowest in bullpen ERA:

- Tampa Bay - 7.40 ERA (30^th)

- Chicago Cubs - 6.30 ERA (27^th)

- LA Dodgers - 5.68 ERA (24^th)

- LA Angels - 5.48 ERA (23^rd)

- Texas - 5.31 ERA (22^nd)

- Atlanta - 4.85 ERA (19^th)

- Boston - 4.84 ERA (18^th)

Sources:

- Sortable Team Stats, MLB.com
- MLB Standings, MLB.com