First Saturday of the season provides good match ups.

Two things are very clear right now. Barry Bonds is on fire and has been for the last two seasons. The Mariners are a more complete team than the A’s due to injuries on the Athletics.The playing field in Seattle will be evened tonight when Mark Mulder goes against the M’s. Without Jermaine Dye and Eric Chavez, the A’s are feeling for a lineup that will consistently get the offense going. Slow starts by Terrence Long (.050) and Ramon Hernandez (.118) aren’t helping either. Freddy Garcia is the hardest thrower the A’s have faced this year and may spell trouble for Dave Justice and Carlos Pena the Athletics’ hottest hitters.

El Duque goes for the Yanks against their cousins, the Devil Rays. The Yanks seem to whack the Tampa guys around at will. El Duque is always a mystery, with some solid middle relief from the Yankees, should do well today. Wilson Alvarez trying to come back from two years of serious arm trouble makes the sacrificial start for Tampa Bay.

Can Scott Erickson, another medical miracle duplicate Monday’s wonderful start against New York as he faces Boston? It may not matter how many runs he gives up since the Orioles might be the worst offensive team in the AL. Derek Lowe had a big game for the BoSox last night. A few years ago he bombed out as a starting pitcher, but finished well in his trial last year and I like the way he throws. He may be the second best starter on this team.

Bartolo Colon goes for his second straight shut out. Great game on opening night in Anaheim last Sunday. Detroit is in such bad straits that the fans were booing the manager unmercifully during pregame introductions on opening day. Somehow, GM Randy Smith just can’t put together a decent line up. Second tier free agents (Craig Paquette) are visible all over this roster, setting manager Phil Garner up for certain failure. Nate Cornejo has game, but is a very raw pitcher starting today for Detroit.

Hideki Irabu looked all right in his relief stint in Oakland this week. Is he in shape? Probably not. I know he eats sushi the night before he starts for good luck. I hope the maguro was kind to him last night.

Ramon Ortiz gets his first start for the Seraphs. A fine back of the rotation starter, he will be hurt by the injury to closer Troy Percival. The A’s hope Texas breaks loose before they get there on Tuesday for a three game set. How much longer can ARod continue to hit .056?

The one fear the Cubs had in signing Moises Alou would be that he would continue his pattern of being injured each season. Guess who went on the DL yesterday? Moises Alou.

Josh Fogg (pitcher number two from the White Sox trade) makes his NL debut for Pittsburgh 3-1, against a weakened Cub lineup. Fred McGriff is hitting .133 and Sammy Sosa is sailing along at a .267 clip, albeit with three homers to his credit.

Phenom Josh Beckett, nasty slider and attitude to match makes his 2002 debut for the Fish today against the Phillies. This kid is the real deal.

When healthy Jeff D’Amico would be a great match for Atlanta’s Tom Glavine. One never knows when Jeff is feeling all right. Scott Strickland is a great pick up for the Mets. Bobby Valentine will turn Mets games into six inning affairs with the bull pen they are putting together. The formula for success followed by many in 2002.

Matt Morris versus Carlos Hernandez. Lefties can bother the Cards. Hernandez had a couple of gems in his rookie year before his season ended abrubtly with injuries. The Astros need him to come through this year to balance the righthanded rotation.

Morris is trouble for anyone and was dominating in his first start.

The Big Unit versus 21 year old rookie Nick Neugebauer in Milwaukee. When Nick pitched during spring training every scout in Phoenix showed up to see this kid work. He can bring it, but is coming off shoulder trouble. He also lost spring time with the flu this past March. This is a game I’d like to see. The way the Brewers strike out and the way Neugebauer throws, there may be 30 punch outs in this game.

Ishii makes his American debut for the Dodgers tonight versus the Rockies. Andy Ashby gave the Dodgers their best news of the year by going seven innings of one hit ball last night. Amazing for the rehabbing pitcher.

The top of the LA order got loose last night going 4-8 with three runs scored. I’m not convinced Roberts and Izturis are going to get the job done this season leading off for LA.

Jason Jennings a reliable young man throws for the Rockies. He may be the real deal. We’ll see.

Finally, Kurt Aimsworth competing with Ryan Jensen for the number five spot in the Giants rotation when Jason Schmidt returns, goes against the Padres. Jeff Kent comes back from his minor league exile and maybe Ryan Klesko will be back from his suspension today for San Diego. The Pads may score some runs once he returns. Padre starter Kevin Jarvis continues to amaze me with his success, he’ll need a good game today because the Giants are tough to beat at home.

Whew, what a Saturday.