Questions litter start of Major League season

by Ian Van Anden
Asst. Sports Editor

America’s pastime has finally returned to the national scene, as opening day of the 2006 baseball season took place on Sunday, April 2. The defending World Series Champion Chicago White Sox opened their season against division rival Cleveland Indians.

The game was delayed by heavy rain, the same rain that swept through Monmouth and put the entire area on a tornado watch, yet the White Sox were able to come away with a dominating 10-4 win.

The first week of games in the 2006 MLB season was marked by shaky pitching and the long ball. There were 10 games that saw one team score at least 10 runs, and in a slug- ging match on Monday, April 3, the Atlanta Braves beat out the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-10.

With every new baseball season, new questions arise and hopes are reborn. The biggest question on everyone’s mind, however, deals with the black cloud that has covered baseball for the past three seasons. That cloud is steroids.

Major league baseball has now launched its own investigation into the steroids scandal. This latest investigation was set off by a book that aims to prove the steroids playboy, Barry Bonds, did indeed knowingly use steroids throughout his otherwise Hall of Fame career. That book is titled “Game of Shadows” and was written by two highly credentialed reporters out of San Francisco.

MLB Commissioner Bud Selige has been highly criticized for any action he does or doesn’t take during this whole steroids era. He now aims to put his foot down and get to the bottom of the steroid story. He, along with everyone else, is looking to finally remove the cloud of speculation that haunts the game so mercilessly.

Here is what we do know about steroids: First, there was use of steroids throughout the 90s and even in the late 80s. Books by Jose Cansaco, positive tests of, among others, Rafeal Palmerio and interviews with retired MLB MVP Ken Caminiti, have revealed to all of the world the wide spread use of steroids.

Second, we know that all the answers will not come out, well at least not without the help of Congress. The current investigation has no power to pull players in and ask them about the 90s or to what is now referred to as the “Steroids Era.” Without subpoena power that was used in the Congressional investigation last season, this investigation will be highly based on hearsay and leaks through books like Cansaco’s and “Game of Shadows.”

One can only speculate how this whole thing will play out, but it is clear it will be very messy. Already in his first appearance outside of San Francisco, Barry Bonds has been taunted by fans. In his first action of the new season while standing in left field, a fan threw a syringe at Bonds’s feet, a clear reference to the speculation that Bonds used steroids to get ahead.

Returning to the actual game of baseball, opening day brought many more questions. The biggest is who will be this year’s Chicago White Sox? In the past two seasons, a World Series champion has been crowned after not winning the title for 86 plus years--the Red Sox in ’04 after 86 years, and the White Sox last year after an 88 year drought.

So, have the stars finally aligned and will the Chicago Cubs finally find the promise land and win their first World Series title since 1908? Well, Monmouth College Cubs fans, don’t get ahead of yourselves. First, the Cubs have A LOT of questions on their roster. The biggest of which is their pitching staff. Will Mark Prior and Kerry Wood ever be healthy enough to be the dominating pitchers they are capable of being? And second, will rookies Matt Murton and Ronny Cedeno pan out this year? The answers to both these questions have me leaning toward not likely, but one never knows.

The biggest hurdle for the Cubs this year will be the division they play in. Two playoff teams came out the NL Central last year and neither one was the Cubs. One of those teams, the Astros, made it to the World Series. The other, St. Louis Cardinals, is the perennial favorite out the NL Central and will look to not only make the playoffs but finally show up to the World Series. Yes, I realize they flew to the 2004 World Series against the Red Sox, but truly it was like they didn't even play.

As for the many White Sox fans who now seem to have covered the MC campus, their biggest question is if they will be able to repeat. If the past couple of years are any indication, the answer is no, because no team has been able to repeat since the Yankee dynasty in the 90s.

The White Sox have made it interesting though. They have only gotten stronger. Their pitching staff is now six deep, with phenom Brandon McCarthy and new addition Javier Vasquez. The Sox lineup and bench have also gotten stronger as well. The most notable offensive addition was slugger Jim Thome. Thome grew up near Monmouth College in Peoria, Ill., and is happy to return to his “hometown team.”

The Sox bench also found depth with additions of utility man Rob Mackowiak and infielder Alex Cintron. Mackowiak comes over from Pittsburgh and he can play third, second and all the outfield positions. As for Cintron, he came from the Arizona Diamondbacks and plays both middle infield positions and usually hits for a high average, hitting just under .300 in his young career.
Finally, let us look to the AL East, my division. This is often the most discussed division in the entire baseball world. The major rumblings this year didn’t come from Bean Town or the Big Apple, but north of the border from the Toronto Blue Jays.

They acquired three big free-agents and five big contracts. Their biggest splash came in signing the young and unproven free agents and five big contracts. Their biggest splash came in signing the young and unproven A.J. Burnett, who has already landed himself on the disabled list. Other major acquisitions were closer: B.J. Ryan, third baseman Troy Glaus, catcher Benji Molina and first baseman Lyle Overbay.

Toronto is trying to jump up and be the first team in the AL East to dismantle the two-horse race between the Yankees and Red Sox. If the Blue Jays succeed, it would be the first time a team other than the Yankees and Red Sox finished first and second in the division.

The Red Sox and Yankees themselves have lots of questions to answer. For the Sox, they need to find out if Coco Crisp can replace Johnny Damon, now with the Yankees, in center field. Then, the Sox’s biggest question would be, who is going to record saves from their bullpen?

In the first save opportunity of the year, the Sox called upon the young arm of Jon Palpebon, instead of the recovering veteran Keith Foulke. Foulke, who struggled much of last year and in his first appearance this year, mostly due to his chronic knee troubles, is the biggest question mark on the Sox roster.

This MLB season should be exciting. MC baseball fans will be tuned in and watching their favorite teams. Whether it is the White Sox, Cubbies, Cardinals or even my Boston Red Sox, there will be many “cheers” heard around the dorms.