Milwaukee 6 San Francisco 10, 0-1
I kept positive about Suppan getting the ball but I knew the offense would have to show up big time against Tim Lincecum in SF. For the most part, the bats did show up, chasing Lincecum after 3, but Suppan, and every pitcher that followed for the Crew gave up at least 1 run. In 4 innings he allowed 6 earned, which was oddly similar to Sabathia's line in his NY debut, and his RBI double is not going to erase those tallies.

The fact that the Crew scored all these runs without a HR is notable, but minor in the face of all the problems exposed in the pitching staff by chalking up 10 to an offense that most considered anemic. Even Bush got touched up for a run in reliefe. I was happy to see Weeks have a good day at the plate, 2-3 with a walk, a double, a steal, a run scored and an RBI. Only game 1, but if I'm going to focus on Suppan's flaws, I feel I need to recognize another's improvements.

As Optimistic as a $90 mill payroll can get you

Opening Day in baseball is all about optimism; optimism in the face of constant failure. When former commissioner Bart Giamatti said baseball was "designed to break your heart," he alluded to the fact that failure is a part of the game. During the course of a season, a good hitter will fail 70% of the time, a championship team may go through multiple losing streaks and for Brew Crew fans, every 5 days, Jeff Suppan must take the mound. Yesterday, with tongue in cheek, a friend proudly proclaimed New York's victory over Cincinnati yesterday the start to a 162-0 season. Considering the Mets closed out their 1 run win with no problem thanks to K-Rod, I can appreciate his obviously fatuous statement. While no baseball fan ever seriously considers the possibility of an undefeated season, it's that hyperbolic optimism that we all need at a time when summer is still a few months off (especially in Wisconsin) and the Brewers enter the season without a number 1 starter.

When the Crew started the '87 campaign 13-0, there were more than a few signs in County Stadium that said 162-0. Thinking your team can make it through the season without tasting defeat is ridiculous but it's still fun to proclaim. Baseball teaches you to enjoy it while you can because within the blink of an eye, you can go 6-18 for May like that '87 team and be right back at the bottom.

Doug Melvin, when asked about the rotation, felt strongly that his 3-5 starters are as good as any team in the league. I can agree with that, the problem is, the whole rotation is 3-5 starters. Losing Sheets and Sabathia was tough and many fans, without much consideration that baseball is still a business, felt that the Crew screwed up by not signing a major free agent pitcher this off season. Given the recession and the inflated price of good arms, I don't know how any rational fan could expect that. In an eye opening article, owner Mark Attanasio admits making money this season might be tough for the Crew: http://www.jsonline.com/sports/brewers/42482297.html However, it was nice to hear him say that the teams payroll, while low for the sake of solvency, was made high enough to keep the team competitive. He felt the fans deserved to have a payroll that made them want to come out to the ballpark even though it will require the Crew to draw 2.6 million to break even, a tough goal considering it's unlikely they will be in the pennant race like they were last season.

So with all that, a 2008 season that ended much later than most Brewer fans are used to, is now history, erased by the start of the 2009 season today in Pac Bell, SBC or AT&T Park (how does a stadium that's barely 10 years old have so many name changes?). As of 2:35 MDT today, 2009 kicks off and more than likely, by 3:00 MDT, Crew fans will be on JSO's blog saying Suppan sucks. I however, will try to maintain my optimism and remember, there's still 161 more after this one.

Each and every MLB fan must endure the grinding, day-to-day drain of a 162 game season that never gives you too much time to savor a win, and thankfully, no more than 48 hours to curse a loss.