SnakeBytes 4/2: Undefeated Edition

Yeah, that's right. Undefeated. Look, I don't get to use the title often, so I'm not going to pass up this opportunity.

Recaps:

• [AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks defeat Colorado Rockies in 11 innings in season opener - Ian Kennedy faced some early nerves in the game, but he recovered after a rough couple of innings to start. "I was a little amped up," he said. "That adrenaline kind of wore off and I felt back to normal again."

• [FSN Arizona] D-backs show resiliency in win over Rockies - It's only one game, obviously, but it's a nice win. We saw the team do pretty much what we were told they could do- aggressive base running, good work from the bullpen, and not letting mistakes drag them down. If the team can keep that up, it's going to make the season a lot easier to watch.

• [The Denver Post] Paige: Two teams play poor April fools - "Considering how brutally and foolishly both the Rockies and the Diamondbacks played, the first game should have been declared nolo contendere, and the teams could have started over today." Gosh, Woody, are you sure you aren't just upset because your team started the season poorly after you said they'd win 93 games? And let's be fair- the Diamondbacks, in point of fact, didn't play "brutally and foolishly." They had problems, but they overcame them. It was good to see.

• [Big League Stew] Upton, D-Backs steal win in classic Coors Field opener - If I were a Rockies fan, I would really have to be concerned about Ubaldo's pitch speed. 88 to 92 mph? Certainly not what they were expecting.

The best the DBacks managed last season was two games above .500- we pulled it off a few times in April, which I'll admit surprised me. So we're halfway to matching it already. Yes, sometimes it is easier to handle the season if your benchmarks are set very, very low.

• [AZ Central] Arizona Diamondbacks' Juan Miranda starts at first base - "Kirk Gibson gave the Opening Day nod to Juan Miranda at first base, but the Arizona Diamondbacks manager stopped short of calling Miranda his everyday first baseman." Yeah, we should get used to this.

• [Reno Gazette-Journal] Reno Aces: With season approaching, Aces finalize roster - Some familiar names will be showing up in Reno, as well as some names we may be more familiar with by the end of the season.

• [DBacks.com] Gibson to use different lineups early on - Yeah, even with the changes in the organization, we won't see a more concrete lineup, at least for now. Which isn't too terribly surprising, really. This team is still, to some degree, in flux, and I'm sure it will remain that way for a while.

• [Visalia Times-Delta] Arizona Diamondbacks send several top prospects to Visalia Rawhide - It's an exciting time for our minor league teams, to be honest, and Visalia seems pretty pleased to be starting out with four of our top seven prospects, according to Baseball America, led by Tyler Skaggs.

• [CNBC] What MLB Teams Are Charging For Tickets, Beer, Hot Dogs & Parking - Good news! The Diamondbacks have the cheapest price for beer, per ounce! Though there may also be a question of quality when it comes to beer, but if quality were part of the metric then they certainly wouldn't be lauding the Pirates for having the lowest ticket prices. The DBacks also get a mention for having the third lowest non-premium ticket prices.

I think I'll be taking a lead from Gibby here, too- unlike in past years, I will not be naming a starter for gameday hat. We've been disappointed by performances from hats last year, so I'll be taking a more fluid approach to selecting what I'll wear this year.

Around Baseball:

• [Sporting News] MLB to remind Yanks of 'hand signal' rule - So, basically, it seems like what's forbidden isn't the relaying of speed and pitch, but the use of hand signals? How strange.

• [Hadball Times] Some people are just imbeciles - I absolutely agree. It's just awful that someone decided to assault someone over something as minor as sports. I hope that the people behind this are brought to justice.

• [ESPN] Los Angeles Angels' Torii Hunter's broken bat could reignite maple debate - Yes, the season has barely begun, and we're already back to the old standards, after a fan was injured by a broken maple bat on Thursday. Maple's popularity began with Barry Bonds- maybe they could ask him some questions about it when they get him on the stand of perjury.

• [Yahoo Sports] Cubbie camouflage can’t disguise disappointment - Mike Quade wasn't recognized on the train? Let's be fair- he's kind of a generic looking guy, and a third of the Cubs fanbase probably thinks Ryne Sandberg is the manager of the team. (Another 10% is already drunk at 7 am on Opening Day.)

• [StLToday.com] Matt Holliday has appendectomy - Well, they're at least getting more creative in their opening day injuries. The Cardinals are hoping Holliday will be back in about two weeks.

So we head into game two of the season today. Maybe feeling a little better than yesterday? Perhaps. Our first game is done, so that nervousness is off, and we've just got the rest of the season to look forward to. Go DBacks!

Note: In answer to the question posed in the picture caption- J.J. Putz is a giant. He stands 6'5" tall, and may or may not have a big blue ox as his best friend.