Opening Day Blog ... Live!

While driving out to the ballpark today, I came upon an idea: Hey, I should do a live diary from Opening Day, Royals vs. Red Sox ... hey, Bill Simmons doesn't have exclusive rights. Of course, the problem is I have no idea how to actually do a live diary, so it could be incredibly lame. I guess we'll see. Oh yeah, buy a book, please.

6 p.m.: Well, we're going to wrap it up here -- this looks like the Royals most successful opener since an 11-2 stomping of Toronto in 1979. Wow. Gil Meche throws a beautiful 7-plus innings, the Royals get more than solid relief pitching, Tony Pena Jr. hits two triples and makes a dazzling play, John Buck earns his cheers with a monster homer, Mike Sweeney doesn't get hurt, the Royals beat the Red Sox 7-1 -- seriously how much better can you get than that?

What does it mean? Well, there are all sorts of good feelings in Kansas City for a couple of days, anyway. And we know one thing for sure -- the Royals will most definitely not go winless this year. They can't take that away.

5:43 p.m.: Well, Joel Peralta was able to work his way through, and so now the Royals lead 6-1 in the bottom of the eighth ... and the veteran Royals observers are saying, "The Royals could use two more runs." Octavio Dotel is not available today, so it looks like the Royals will rely on David Riske should there be trouble in the ninth. Yikes.

A reader asks: Why did the Royals start Ross Gload over Emil Brown. I think as a Royals fan, you might want to get used to that. Gload is a Buddy Bell kind of player. He gives you a professional at-bat. Plays pretty good defense at first base and isn't bad in the outfield. Emil is -- let's be kind here -- more of an all-or-nothing player, and Buddy really doesn't like those kinds of players much. He craves consistency.

OK, we have to interrupt this answer to say -- Tony Pena Jr. just hit another triple. That's two: He's just the 25th Royals player ever to hit two triples in a game. So there.

5:23 p.m.: Well, Meche came out to start the eighth, but I have a feeling he's just going to throw his warm-up pitches and then Buddy will take him out so he can get the applause. I hope he doesn't do that ... I've always thought that was kind of a bush league move.

Nope, Meche will face at least one batter -- Crisp. He forced the groundout 3-1. He still looks strong. He then gives up a single to Dustin Pedroia (David DeJesus almost came up with it), who this time did not try to stretch it into a double. That's it. Buddy came to get Meche, and the crowd gave Meche a huge cheer. Standing O. The $55 million day seems worth it for at least a day. It's the longest start for a Royals pitcher on Opening Day since 1988.

5:11 p.m.: Oh my gosh, REO Speedwagon is now singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" ... I mean this is getting to be like that Greg Norman collapse at the Masters in 1996. It was interesting for a while, but after a while you just couldn't watch anymore.

Gil Meche had another 1-2-3 inning -- he's now thrown what qualifies as a Royals gem. And it looks like he's done. Someone is warming up in the Royals bullpen -- Joel Peralta. He pronounces his first name Jo-EL by the way -- like something out of Superman. Well, wait a minute, Peralta is not warming up. They're all just milling around out there. Now he's throwing again. Now he's not. You know, Buddy might bring Meche out to start the eighth -- he's only thrown 95 pitches.

4:55 p.m.: Well, Kevin Youkilis runs into an out, Manny Ramirez hits into a double play, and Gil Meche is now through six innings having given up one run. He's thrown 85 pitches -- and it looks like he will come out for the seventh. And John Buck just hit a solo shot -- so the Royals now lead 6-1. And as one PBW said: This now has the making of a major disaster.

Schilling went just four innings -- and John Blake has come through again. This apparently was Schilling's shortest start since April 1997. Well, he had a shorter start in 2001, but that was because of a light failure.

4:33 p.m.: Mark Grudzielanek -- now 3-for-3 -- clubbed a double to right to score two, then he scored on Teahen's single. It's 5-1 Royals. And now we'll find out a little bit about Gil Meche. How will he respond after the Royals gave him a nice lead? People in Kansas City have grown used to watching pitchers give leads back.

He started off well, striking out Coco Crisp (postscript: I don't like Coco Crisp as a player at all and I never have. To me, he's one of those guys who puts up good enough numbers so that you have to play him, but never good enough numbers to actually help you win. Could be wrong, though).

And here comes Dustin Pedroia -- the best ploy here might be to let Pedroia single and try to strech it into a double. Meche threw a terrific power curveball to go ahead 1-2. Royals general manager Dayton Moore says he throws the best power curve in the league. I don't know who else throws a power curve.

Pedroia hit a slow roller up the middle -- and Tony Pena Jr. made one heck of a play, ranged to his left, throws off balance, gets Pedroia. Wow -- no Royals shortstop has made that play since, er, Fred Patek? Actually, Angel Berroa in his first year made quite a few nice plays over the middle. That was a different Angel Berroa, though.

Meche followed it up with a power curve strikeout of Julio Lugo -- that's three strikeouts for Lugo. Good decision to lead him off. Royals still up 5-1 going into the bottom of the fifth.

The Royals just had their Dance Off promotion -- and I hate the Dance Off. This is where to fans dance off to win some sort of lame prize. I only bring this up, though, because one of the contestants was a young guy, probably in his 20s, and the other was like a 10-year-old girl. I mean, seriously, what chance did that guy have? Why even bother?

4:17 p.m.: And Gil Meche threw another scoreless inning -- the Royals lead 2-1 in the middle of four. Meche has really shown some great stuff. You can see why scouts love him. Sure, I've heard from all the Seattle fans who say: "He will break your heart." Maybe so. But, like the coach says in "Heaven Can Wait" -- "He's looking awfully good."

The baseball talk is flying all around the press box. One guy says the Tigers will be lucky to finish .500 this year. Another says Schilling is finished. Another says Ben Sheets will win the Cy Young. One of the best parts of Opening Day is the wild speculation based on one game. It doesn't matter how many years you've watched the game -- you can't help it.

Tony Pena Jr. faced Curt Schilling again -- and he drew a walk. So far nobody has predicted a batting title for Pena, but the game is still young.

4:00 p.m.: One great thing about sportswriters: We LOVE obscure stats. So when Red Sox public relations man John Blake -- good man -- walked through the press box and said: "The last time Curt Schilling issued a bases-loaded walk was August 7, 2005" some Red Sox writer asked: "Do you know who was the hitter, John?"

Because of what the scout said, we are not obsessively watching Gil Meche's toe and heel. He just struck out Julio Lugo for the second time today ... he has retired five in a row. He just threw a dandy curveball to Kevin Youkilis and followed it up with a 96-mph fastball that barely missed the corner. You have to say this guy's got some stuff. And he retired the side in order.

3:54 p.m.: Baseball is such a great game. Everyone was spending some time mocking Tony Pena Jr., who has the reputation (and history) of not being able to hit at all. So what did he do? He crunched a triple off of Curt Schilling. It's like Joe Nuxhall would say during those Reds broadcasts: "If you swing the bat, you're dangerous."

Tony Pena Jr. has now hit Schilling better than his father. Tony Pena was 0-3 against Schilling.

And the Royals cashed in when Mark Grudzielanek had a classic Mark Grudzielanek single -- a grounder between first and second. Royals lead 2-1.

3:39 p.m.: Well, Ryan Shealy earned a bases loaded walk, and it's 1-1 entering the second inning. Curt Schilling apparently threw 33 pitches that inning -- youch. That's the talk of the pressbox now -- along with the fact that Gil Meche threw 27 pitches in the first.

Do you even remember what the game was like BEFORE pitch counts? It's like trying to remember the world before the Internet.

Dustin Pedroia just tried to stretch a routine single into a double and was out by about 40 feet. Is there anything more embarassing for a player than running into an obvious out?

3:28 p.m.: You know, it really doesn't matter where you are -- St. Louis, New York, Kansas City or Burlington, N.C. -- there is a large percentage of any baseball crowd that will cheer like crazy for a routine pop-up. I think that when you go into any ballpark, they should give you a pamphlet -- how to be a good baseball fan. This would include:

1. When seeing a ball hit to the outfield -- WATCH THE OUTFIELDER. He will tell you whether the ball is hit well or not.
2. Don't scream "balk" when the guy whirls around and fakes the throw to second.
3. Get the heck out of the way when the guy on your team is trying to catch a foul pop-up.

The Royals have a rally already against Curt Schilling. How about this: Alex Gordon's first major league at-bat is with the bases loaded against Curt Schilling. Let's go pitch by pitch, shall we?

Pitch 1: A 94-mph fastball -- taken for a strike on inside corner.
Pitch 2: A 96-mph fastball -- Gordon fouls it straight back off the screen.
Wow he has a pretty swing.
Pitch 3: An 85 mph splitter, Gordon checks his swing and fouls it off barely.
Pitch 4: An 85-mph breaking ball that looked a little low. A little. Wise guy PBW says: Alex has earned that call.
Pitch 5: A 93-mph fastball fouled back. It looked high, but he's not getting any more calls.
Pitch 6: An 86 mph slider, he barely got a piece of it. Now, Varitek goes and talks to Schilling. What a great at-bat.
Pitch 7: An 86-mph split, outside and low, maybe, Gordon kind of waved at it for strike three. Still one heck of a battle.

3:20 p.m.: A scout says that that the big difference with Meche is how he lands -- when he lands on his toe he's good, when he lands on his heel he's not so good. It's hard to tell whether he's landing on his toe or heel, but Manny Ramirez just hit a rope to center fielder (nice play by DeJesus) and he walked J.D. Drew. So I'm going to guess he landing on his heel. He did strike out Mike Lowell to minimize the damage.

Just before the strikeout, a fan got in the way when John Buck was trying to catch a foul pop up behind home plate. There is something that happens to people when a pop-up is coming their way. While it's in the air, they have this feeling: "Oh, I'm going to catch this. Look how softly it's falling. It will just plop gently into my hands." Then, as the ball gets closer, they realize it's falling really fast, and a baseball is as hard as a rock, and all of a sudden they panic. Anyway, the fans booed the guy. He deserved it.

3:09 p.m.: OK, Gil Meche started off by striking out Julio Lugo -- it's a new year. Meche has already hit 97 mph on the scoreboard radar gun ... though honestly I have absolutely no idea how much faith to put into that number. I have a feeling they use the same radar gun they use near St. Paul Nebraska, where I got pulled over for speeding.
OK, well Kevin Youkilis just rocketed a single, and then David Ortiz roped a double to left-center to score him. So, maybe it isn't a new year.

2:59 p.m.: It just occurred to me that the new blog items should actually be at the TOP of the blog. I told you I was new at this. It took me forever to rearrange the blog. Sorry. The Royals were just introduced. One of the best parts of hearing team introduced is trying to guess who gets the loudest cheer and the weakest cheer.

Loudest cheer: Zack Greinke. No doubt about it. Fans are really rooting for Zack -- and one of those press box wags is predicting 18 Zack victories this year. For his sake, I will not mention his name.

Weakest cheer: John Buck. There were no boos, just sort of a disinterested: "Yay, I guess."

Curt Schilling actually got a nice cheer too.

REO Speedwagon sang the National Anthem, leading a PBW to say: "Theyve still got it." I don't believe for one minute they're playing at Wal-Mart tonight, but I'll check it out.

2:43 p.m.: George Brett just walked on the field to do a nice tribute to Ford Frick winner Denny Matthews, the longtime Royals announcer. Denny waved from the press box. What he couldn't have gone down the field? It's a half hour before gametime. But he got a nice ovation ... it's really good to see Denny get some love and respect.

Then, they did a tribute to Buck O'Neil ... you know, this year they are having a special person in the community sit in Buck's seat behind home plate every game. It's really a neat idea. Today, it will be Warren O'Neil, Buck's brother.

As part of the tribute, they have video of Buck singing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" on the scoreboard, and while I realize I'm pretty biased about this, I honestly don't think there is anything that says what baseball means more than Buck singing that song.

One idea that I'm not as sure about: The Royals will have cheerleaders this year. I guess they're not cheerleaders -- they're spirit squad women or something like that. It sounds like a BAD idea, but let's wait and see before passing any judgment.

Curt Schilling was just introduced. Apparently, the car missed him.

2:16 p.m.: They're chalking up the baselines now. The fountains are going. Cars are lined up on I-70. The Japanese Media is taking pictures of -- I don't know, something DiceK related. So we are obviously getting close to gametime. Opening Day is great.

Mark Grudzielanek just got his Gold Glove. Nice moment. What exactly will he do with that thing?

OK, we have our first questions from the readers. Instead of just answering the question myself, I'll do a little poll of press box wags -- other Star reporters. Here we go:

How many wins for the teams: Looks the consensus is about 70.
How many wins for Gil Meche: Looks the consensus is 13.
How many innings pitched for Gil Meche: Consensus is about 190.
How many homers for Alex Gordon: Wide disagreement here -- we had someone say about as low as 16 and as high as 25. We'll go with 21.
How many ABs for Mike Sweeney: Wide disagreement here -- someone went as low at 174 and another as high as 522. Let's say the consensus is 425 or so.

12:48 p.m.: Well, Buddy Bell is ready. There really isn't anything much less useful than a pregame interview session with the manager -- especially on Opening Day when there's nothing really to talk about -- but Buddy was charming. When he was asked what he said to rookie phenom Alex Gordon to calm him down for today, he said: "I'm staying away from him."

You know, Buddy Bell really was a good player, a borderline great player. He had 2,500 hits, hit 200 homers, won six gold gloves -- it's a pretty special resume for a third baseman. I was thinking: Which managers were the best players? I quickly rank them like this:

1. Joe Torre, Yankees.
2. Buddy Bell, Royals.
3. Willie Randolph, Mets
4. Ozzie Guillen, White Sox
5. Mike Sciosia, Angels
6. Lou Piniella, Cubs
7. Mike Hargrove, Mariners
8. Phil Garner, Astros
9. Bud Black, Padres
10. Terry Francona, Red Sox
11. Clint Hurdle, Rockies (only manager to make cover of SI as a player?)
12. Bob Melvin, Diamondbacks
13. Ron Washington, Rangers
14. Ron Gardenhire, Twins.
15. Bob Geren, Athletics
16. Jerry Narron, Reds
17. Brucy Bochy, Giants
18. Charlie Manuel, Phillies
19. Ned Yost, Brewers
20. Bobby Cox, Braves
21. Jim Tracy, Pirates
22. John Gibbons, Blue Jays
23. Tony LaRussa, Cardinals
24. Eric Wedge, Indians
25. Sam Perlozzo, Orioles

DID NOT PLAY IN BIG LEAGUES

26. Grady Little, Dodgers
27. Joe Maddon, Devil Rays
28. Fredi Gonzalez, Marlins
29. Jim Leyland, TIgers
30. Manny Acta, Nationals (figure he should get used to that 30 spot)

11:30 a.m.: Got an email from David Pinto at Baseball Musings ... some local radio station somewhere decided to do a gag where they "reported" that Curt Schilling wouldn't make the start for the Sox today because had been hit by a car and had broken his arm. Apparently this was some sort of April Fool's joke, even though it's not April Fool's Day today -- isn't this like pinching someone on the day AFTER St. Patrick's Day for not wearing green? Stupid. Plus it's a bad gag. Why didn't the car hit his foot and open up a cut or something that would have made sense?

You know, it seems like a lot of people in the business don't like Schilling because they see him as a self-promoter and blowhard and all that, but I like the guy a lot. One, I admire people who perform well on the biggest stage -- to me, that's the greatest thrill in sports. I don't know if clutch-performance exists as a grand concept, but it's fun to watch when it happens. Two, I like people who speak their mind whether you agree or not -- and he does that.

And three is personal ... For Game 1 of the 2001 World Series, I wrote a column about Schilling and his father. Woke up early the next morning in the hotel, had my coffee, went to check the email ... and there was a thank you email from Curt Schilling. I know, this really does not disprove the self-promoter theory, but I thought it was very nice. OK, heading downstairs to see what the boys have to say. Back soon.

11:01 a.m.: So you already know that REO Speedwagon sang the national anthem at the Cardinals game yesterday ... well, they're singing it here in Kansas City today as well. There are countless jokes to be made here -- as Vac pointed out, REO Speedwagon was done the LAST time the Royals won the World Series. But I bring this up now to show you one of the saddest/funniest things, I've ever seen:

The REO Speedwagon upcoming Tour Dates

April 21: Ladsdon, SC, Exchange Park Fairgrounds.
May 4: Norman, Okla., Riverwind Casino.
May 5: Thackerville, Okla., Winstar Casino.
May 12: Shelton, Wash., Little Creek Casino.
May 16: Victorville, Calif., San Bernardino County Fair.
Sept. 14: Cape Girardeau, MO, Southeast Missouri Fair Arena Park.

Two things come to mind. (1) When you're looking at your tour schedule, and Thackerville is a highlight, don't you think about cashing in those "Keep on Loving You" residuals and get a place on the beach. (2) Are there no County Fairs between May 16 and Sept. 14?

10:45 a.m.: Just got out to Kauffman Stadium -- there's a guy mowing the infield right now. He appears to be using some sort of manual mower ... I realize the Royals are a small market club, but come on.
Had an inspirational moment on the drive over. I was driving on I-435 and a car went blurring by in the left lane -- I mean this guy was flying. I looked over, and there was a blue Royals flag flapping out of the driver's window. Here was a Royals' fan really ready to get the season started. It's the magic of Opening Day.