Game 1 - Mets 2, Reds 1

I feel like Burgess Meridith in The Twilight Zone, all alone in the world...

I ended last year with this and I'll try to continue it to the best of my ability this time around, despite the cares of you all (which is likely dwindled to a non-existent number).

Opening Day should be a federal holiday and I shouldn't have to hope for an unpaid vacation like my friend Josh to take the day off and watch the National Past time.

But that's neither here nor there. I took lunch at 1 p.m. to listen to the first inning with Marty and Thom Brennaman and The Cowboy Jeff Brantley (who I actually saw in person while covering baseball in central Mississippi since he was an assistant coach at Clinton High, his alma mater.)

Well, the 1st inning started like I'm sure Jerry Manuel scripted it up. Jose Reyes gets on base with an infield single and steals second. Daniel Murphy, who works best in the No.2 hole, moves Jose over to third (although his grounder went to the left side).

This is the situation that David Wright was in countless times last year. Runner in scoring position with less than 2 outs and quality contact brings home a run. It's the reason he's a top 5 pick in anyone's fantasy league and despite 125 RBIs last year, it's his strike out against Aaron Harang that infuriates Mets fans.

The next time I was able to sneak out to my car was to hear the top of the sixth with Murphy at the plate, bases loaded and only one out. Marty Brennaman talked about a double play but Murphy's hard grounder to first would score Luis Castillo from third. That made it 2-0 and it wasn't until I got home to see that the rookie outfielders on my fantasy team homered.

I wouldn't get back to the radio until I got off my shift around 4:30, which was just in time for the ninth inning. Wright walked and then got picked off cuz I was hoping he would steal a base...

Needless to say, Brennaman informed me that J.J. Putz pitched a scoreless eighth (another one on my fantasy team and yes, I have a ton of Mets on my team). That led the way to K-Rod and for the first time in recent history, I didn't feel any trepidation headed into the final frame.

Let's think back and take a look. I'm not even gonna mention last September when it was a merry-go-round of pain in the pen after Billy Wagner was lost for the year. Speaking of which, Wagner wasn't the door-closing specialist we all believed him to be. He routinely would walk a batter and you always have to worry about someone making decent contact with his 97 MPH fastball.

Before that, it was Braden Looper (clearly better as a starter. Who woulda thunk it?) and Armando "Smoke" Benitez. Need I say more? John Franco came out of the pen prior to that and when your strike out pitch is a changeup and you're not named Trevor or Johan, things can get dicey.

I think the last time I wasn't worried about the ninth was Randy Myers and that was 1989.

So of course Frankie comes in, throw nothing but strikes and quickly and quietly ends the game.

They'll take a day off and now we'll see if Mike Pelfrey stands tall as the No. 2 we'll need to compete in the best division in the National League.

Read you on Wednesday.