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April 3, 2006


YAY! OPENING DAY!
by Larry Mahnken

OK, so it might rain, but if it doesn't, today is the first day of the 2006 season.

One of the nice things about getting older is that the offseason doesn't seem as long as it once did. OK, so the World Series ends later and the season starts sooner than it used to, so it is a few days shorter in actuality, but it feels even shorter than that.

There is a decidedly different feeling for me about this season than there has in seasons past. The biggest difference, I feel, is the general lack of difference between the team that ended last season on a 20-8 run and the team that will start this season. In recent seasons, offseason turnover has been almost the order of the day:

2001->2002:
Tino->Johnson
Brosius->Ventura
O'Neill->Shane Vander Wal
Knoblauch->White
Justice->Giambi

2002->2003
Also a quiet offseason -- White->Matsui was the only regular change, and Stanton->Hammond

2003->2004
Boone->Rodriguez
Soriano->Wilson
Johnson->Clark
Garcia->Sheffield
Clemens->Brown
Pettitte->Vazquez
Weaver->
Hammond->Quantrill
Osuna->Gordon

2004->2005
Vazquez->Johnson
Lieber->Pavano
Hernandez->Wright
Heredia->Stanton
Cairo->Womack
Clark->Tino

This year, the team is more or less the same. Damon replaces Tino, Farsworth replaces Gordon, and Myers and Villone replace Leiter and Embree, but it's mostly the same squad. Same rotation, same lineup, somewhat different bullpen.

It's good to see, because there really wasn't much wrong with the team down the stretch, and the big change they made addressed their true need -- defense.

How will it play out? I think it'll turn out very well. I think the rotation will end up being stronger this season than it was last, and that the lineup will be a monster. The defense will still suck, but not as badly as it did, and overall, that's a better team than they had a year earlier. 100 wins? Maybe. Postseason? Probably. A World Championship?

Well, the Angels look like they may miss the playoffs, so maybe.

I'll fret over that stuff when they're 11-19, but today is a celebration! It's Opening Day! Yaaaaaaaaaay!