Opening Day Thoughts
ARLINGTON, TX (CBS) - Game One of 162 is in the books for the 2011 Boston Red Sox and here are some thoughts on the day...
--Adrian Gonzalez is going to be a pleasure to watch on a daily basis in a Red Sox uniform. He began his Sox career with two hits, 3 RBI, and a stolen base. Gonzalez has a sweet swing that will serve him well at Fenway. Trust me, he will be a stud at Fenway Park and seemingly has the perfect personality for Boston. He can also pick it defensively and by the way, that stolen base was just the second of his career. He did say he was the slowest player on his team, but he leads them right now in stolen bags!
--Expect Gonzalez to have that contract extension done in a few weeks. The Sox just want to make sure that his surgically repaired shoulder is fine and soon he'll have his mega deal done.
--Carl Crawford struggled in his Sox debut by going 0-4 with 3 strikeouts. Tough to open up against a guy like CJ Wilson. Crawford will be fine. Meanwhile, I met his Dad outside the Sox clubhouse after the game. How did I know it was him? He was the guy sitting on a bench outside the Sox clubhouse wearing a Sox hat and jersey......and looked like Carl Crawford will when he's 20 years older.
--Tough day for Jon Lester. The lefty surrendered three home runs for the first time in his career. The third was a 3- run shot from Mike Napoli that gave Texas a 5-4 lead. Looking back it wasn't too bad of a pitch as Napoli golfer it out to left. Earlier, Lester got Napoli to swing at an off-speed pitch in the dirt. Thought maybe, that's where Lester should have put it.
--You had to go back to June 14th, 2009 to find the one and only time Daniel Bard had given up 4 runs in a game. In fact, Bard only gave up 16 TOTAL in all of 2010.
--Jacoby Ellsbury told me in Spring Training that he was way ahead of schedule due to missing so much time last season. Two hits later....he sure looks like it.
--Nice to see David Ortiz homer to left-center in the 8th inning. If he's doing that...and off a lefthander...could bode well for a big season from Big Papi
