Opinion

John McGraw, the great New York Giants manager, and George Stallings, who managed the 1914 World Champion miracle Boston Braves, were two of the first managers to employ the "platoon" system.

The premise was that it was easier for a left-handed batter to hit a right-handed pitcher's breaking pitches, and for a right-handed batter to hit a left-hander's breaking pitches. The platoon system was utilized most successfully by Casey Stengel, who learned it from John McGraw when he played for the Giants in 1922 and 1923.

There are many things that can be said about Barry Bonds, most negative, but not all.

One of the positivies in the swirl of negative publicity that seems to follow Bonds wherever he goes is his fantastic season in 2007. In his age 42 season, Bonds hit 28 home runs and had 66 RBI. He also led Major League Baseball in walks with 132 and broke the most hallowed baseball record of all time, Hank Aaron’s home run record.

The Detroit Tigers of '06, the Tampa Bay Rays of '08, and the world champion St. Louis Cardinals of '06 all had something in common, as you might already know.

They were all disregarded in the pre-season predictions, with nobody giving them a chance to win a division championship, let alone a World Series championship. 

However, certain things that had to happen, did happen. In return, they were able to maximize on their potential, and in the process, proved all doubters wrong.

Chipper Jones is one of the most cherished players to ever don the Braves uniform, but is he the greatest pure hitter to ever play the game? If you take a look at his career stats and compare them to other third basemen and switch hitters who have played, there might be an argument to suggest that he is at the top of the list.

Chipper Jones was drafted No. 1 in the 1990 MLB draft by the Atlanta Braves. He was a member of the 1995 World Series champions and finished second to Hideo Nomo in the rookie of the year balloting.

The 2009 MLB baseball season just started, with the Atlanta Braves playing the defending champion Phillies as we speak.

On Monday, some games to watch include the AL East showdown between my Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays, Texas plays the new-look Indians, and of course, the match-up which includes a storied rivalry, the Dodgers against the Giants.

Many changes took place during the offseason. As you know, the Yankees transformed themselves into contenders overnight, acquiring big bat Mark Teixeira, southpaw C.C Sabathia, pitcher A.J. Burnett, and Nick Swisher.

With the start of the 2009 baseball season officially kicking off today when the World Champ Philadelphia Phillies play host to the Atlanta Braves, I would like to give a manifesto of sorts to why baseball is everything good in the world, as well as being the best sport ever.

     1.    Skills over Athleticism

I admit it.

As Cubs fans, we're a bit spoiled now. The close call in 2003 and the division titles in the last two seasons have only whetted our appetite for more.

Making the playoffs just won't satisfy many of us Cubs fans any longer. We want to win a championship and finally shed that "lovable losers" tag, once and for all!

I believe that's a good thing. While the Cubs success has made it more difficult to get good seats at Wrigley Field, and has led to the occasional booing of our own players, I think it's more healthy that we want to win.

With new stadiums come the firsts. The first strikeout thrown, the first strikeout victim hurt, the first home run hit, and the first win, loss, and save completed.

We can add a new one to that list, first Phillies fan thrown out. It may just be a dubious honor. But for a Phillies fan you should hold it with honor and pride.

I had to find out: Just what makes this group tick?

I'm a life-long New York Mets fan approaching 50 years of age. I have been following Major League Baseball for as long as I can recall and have been to many games in many cities. Needless to say, I've interacted with fans from all walks of life.

New York has two very popular baseball teams: the elite, historic, decorated Yankees and the Mets, the team that never fails to disappoint.

Only two days away from now is an ALCS rematch; the Rays square off vs. the Red Sox at Fenway Park on Opening Day.

Since I don't get to see the Sox play too much, I really did jump up and down for a minute when I found out this game was getting picked up by ESPN2.

The Red Sox have been praised by many this off-season for adding a whole lot of "depth" to their team.

They have done this by bringing in Brad Penny, Takashi Saito, John Smoltz, Ramon Ramirez, and Rocco Baldelli.