Sunday Night Notes (Week One)

• Alfonso Soriano began the ESPN game of the week, on cue, with his 51st career leadoff homer, only two behind Craig Biggio (53) for 2nd all-time. It is Soriano's fourth homer this week. The Fonz is the king of streaky hitters, so this isn't exactly abnormal. What is unusual is that Soriano is a notoriously slow starter, especially since joining the cold-weather Cubs. In April of '07 and '08 he combined for only 2 HR. A hot start, as well as a healthy midsummer (cross your fingers), could allow Soriano to put together the kind of season Chicago envisioned when they signed him to an 8-year/$136 Million deal.
  
• The Indians didn't get their first win until this afternoon, partially due to the fact Cliff Lee has looked very mediocre coming off his Cy Young award. I don't worry too much about him or Fausto Carmona. The young man who will need to solidify their rotation is Anthony Reyes, who was the winner against Toronto earlier today. Reyes was never appreciated much by Tony LaRussa and Dave Duncan, but he has exceptional movement and the potential to dominate if he can develop adequate control. Today he allowed only three walks and three hits in six innings and was a bit unlucky to yield four earned runs, all but one in his final inning of work. This is an especially good sign because the Blue Jays have a very patient lineup and was probably the hottest hitting team during the first week (46 R, .318 AVG, and 10 HR in 7 games).