CHARGED.fm

In today's installment of the Hit and Run, we'll look at a couple of early season story lines that have taken center stage in this young, almost embryonic MLB season thus far.

1. The Mets… undefeated?  Clearly the most surprising development in the first week of the season is the success of the New York Mets.  They opened their season with a sweep of the Atlanta Braves at home, including strong pitching performances by Jonathan Niese, Johan Santana, and R.A. Dickey.  Then last night, they took down the upstart Washington Nationals in walk-off fashion thanks to a single by Daniel Murphy.  New York is the only 4-0 team in baseball right now.  They've gotten good starting pitching, good work from their bullpen early (especially new closer Frank Francisco), and they are hitting just enough to get the job done.  I don't think they can keep this up, but good for the Mets so far.  With all of the shit they have had to deal with, they deserve some good times.

2. The Yankees and Red Sox are on the board.  It was also a bit surprising to see both the Yankees and Red Sox go 0-3 on opening weekend.  Neither team had a great matchup (Boston in Detroit and New York in Tampa Bay) but I would have expected at least one team.  I'm sure no one thought that Ivan Nova and Felix Dubrount would earn the first wins for the Yankees and Red Sox, respectively, but that's how it shook out.  I'm not worried about either team in the long run.  Both offenses are still elite, and the pitching will work itself out .

3. Yu Darvish makes his debut.  The Rangers' prize from the offseason made his first big league start last night, and things didn't go smoothly.  He got touched up for 4 runs in the first inning, which included four singles, three walks (one with the bases loaded), and a wild pitch.  After giving up another run in the second, he finally settled down.  He lasted another three and two-thirds innings, giving up just two singles and a walk the rest of the way.  He also lasted long enough to get the win as the Texas bats jumped all over Seattle starter Hector Noesi.  It's probably beneficial that he faced some adversity right off the bat.  The sooner you get those early bumps in the road out of the way the better, and Darvish definitely has the makeup to be a solid starter for Texas this year.  Plus, if more fans like this guy show up to games, we're all better off.

4. Barry Zito's Shutout.  I'm sure no one had the foresight to think that Barry Zito would toss the first shutout of the season, but that's exactly what he did yesterday (in Colorado of all places).  Zito had it going yesterday against the Rockies, surrendering only four hits over nine innings while walking no one and using 114 pitches to complete the game.  It was Zito's first complete game shutout since 2003, and I think this is just a flash in the pan.  I'm impressed that he was able to do it in the hitter's haven that is Coors Field, but I'm not buying Zito's resurgence or anything.

Let CHARGED.fm get you tickets to see the New York Mets this season.