Opinion

The Rockies have been to the playoffs two of the last three years. They have one of the best lineups in baseball. They have an ace who is 4-0 and has an ERA well below 1.00. They have respect from around the league. Judging by the way the Rockies are playing, it would be easy to guess that these Rockies are less like a playoff team, and more like the Rockies from the "Todd and the toddlers" era.

Today, in the Braves second consecutive win (we need one more for a winning streak), Troy Glaus had three hits in four trips to the plate (his only out was when Hunter Pence made a diving grab) bringing his season average up 25 points to .221.

Last night, the Mets sent a message to the Phillies by winning in a lopsided fashion. They let the Phils know this is not the same team they were last year.

The Mets backed it up by hitting home runs and pitching well. They even plunked a batter after the Phils hit Jeff Francoeur.

Today, it was the Phillies' turn. They responded by blowing out the Mets in a 10-rout on national television.

The Phillies set the tone in the fourth inning by scoring six runs. From there, Roy Halladay stymied the Mets for a complete game shutout.

As April draws to a close, the New York Yankees find themselves 15-7, 1.5 games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays. It was a good month for the Yankees, especially considering the slow start last year.

So far, we've seen some really good, promising things. We've also seen some not-so-good things. So what are the positives and negatives?

Shall we?

The Positives

1) Robinson Cano

Following a Nick Swisher home run Saturday, the Yankees just reclaimed a 6-5 lead from the White Sox after Javier Vazquez's slow start put the Yankees in a quick hole.

However, in the top of the seventh, Yankee manager Joe Girardi pulled Sergio Mitre who pitched well in relief of Vazquez and went with reliever David Robertson. Robertson was projected to be one of the team's best relievers going in 2010.

Detroit Tigers fans remember Curtis Granderson.

Don't they?

Granderson was ushered off to New York in a multi-player deal, and the former fan-favorite is now a distant memory to the MoTown faithful.

In exchange for Granderson in the three-team merry-go-round, the Tigers received Austin Jackson, Max Scherzer, Daniel Schlereth and Phil Coke.

And the Arizona Diamondbacks got shafted.

Be honest. Did anyone think Rod Barajas would have an impact on the Mets?

After Bengie Molina decided he could win a championship with the Giants by signing with them, the Mets scrambled to find anyone that was willing to catch.

Barajas assumed he would get a lucrative deal based on his service in the majors.

It didn't happen that way.

Dr. James Andrews is a simple man. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama, and you wouldn't expect him to be worldly renowned.

But he is very famous. Andrews, an orthopedic surgeon, is known as one of the best surgeons for knee, shoulder, and elbow injuries.

Last night my dad called me and asked me if I wanted to go to the Yankee game with him on Sunday. I told him I had plans for Sunday and asked him why we didn’t just go Saturday (today) instead. I was promptly told, no and reminded that Javier Vazquez is pitching today which meant that he didn’t want to go. “With so many good pitchers on the staff I’d rather wait and go see somebody better,” my dad said.

The outlook isn't brilliant for the Local 9 these days.

The Sox have weathered a first month of the season filled with injuries, ineffectiveness, and all other manner of "suckitude," and have surprisingly come out of it with an 11-12 record.

They have beaten up on the dregs of the AL—thank God for doormats—going 9-4 against the Royals, Jays, O's, and Rangers, while running up a less than impressive 2-8 record against the Rays, Yanks, and Twins. What's surprising is not that there have been issues, but what they are.