One down, 161 to go

The Giants won their first game of the 2010 season, defeating the Houston Astros 5-2 in Texas. Tim Lincecum got the win in decisive fashion, Giants got good hitting and defense from the guys, and, right now, all is right in the baseball world.

Tomorrow, of course, is another day and another game. It's a long season, and a good start is only that—a start. Too, too often, these euphoric moments are followed all too quickly by the thud of a four-game losing streak. But today, right now, the Giants are winning. And that feels just fine to me. Baseball is back—woohooo!

Now impersonating an actual ballplayer, your AL pitcher!

American League managers have instructed their pitchers to take every pitch when playing in a National League game. "Take" as in "stand there with the bat on your shoulder and watch the ball as it crosses the plate." Whether this is a dictum only for these final Spring Training matchups or, as I fear, something that will endure throughout the season, I don't know. What I do know is that it's a travesty, a mockery of baseball as it should be played, a disrespecting of the AL pitchers who at least at one time were real ballplayers, and why I HATE HATE HATE the whole idea of the "designated hitter." Bah! A pox on all those AL houses. Shame on you.