Schedule Observation

The different thing in this year's MLB schedules is the reshuffling of
inter-league play, from specific times of the year to scattered
instances throughout the entire season.

In the NL East inter-league games this year are to be found as early
as April 5-7 (PHI vs. KC) and as late as the last series of the season
(MIA vs. DET).

But there's still one time of the year when all teams play
inter-league. And that's that mystic, probably numerologistic time of
the year, on the last week in May, which has for the last several
seasons played host to two straight two-game series, this year being
no exception.

Except that this year those four games are the difference in the
schedules. In the NL East for the rest of this year, all five teams
will be playing inter-league games against Minnesota, the White Sox,
Cleveland, Kansas City and Detroit. But on May 27-31, each team will
be playing two home and two away games against their supposed 'natural
rivals', AL teams that the rest of the NL East aren't scheduled to
play.

These match-ups are MIA and TB, NYM and NYY, WAS and BAL, PHI and BOS
(uh, okay), and ATL and TOR (huh?).

And They're Off!

Tonight the MLB 2013 season begins with a game between Texas and what-used-to-be-the-NL Houston Astros. Back to tradition, here's the scoreboards of six different services - pick the one that works for you...

(Yahoo)(ESPN)(CBSSports)(MLB)(FOX)(CNNSI)

Fish Rotation Gutted

Jose Fernandez, John Maine and Alex Sanabia are called up after
injuries to starters Nathan Eovaldi and Henderson Alvarez...
http://tinyurl.com/ct2f3ga

Grabbing Whoever

The Fish sign Wilson Valdez...
http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/03/24/3303239/wilson-valdez-added-to-the-miami.html

...and Matt Diaz...
bit.ly/X6uCAw

No Chone

The Fish release Figgins, without having a reasonable alternative...
http://tinyurl.com/bsloffl

Money Money Money

Politifact considers Jeffrey's statement that tourists are paying for
the Marlins stadium only half-true....
http://tinyurl.com/a9h6uuy

The Marlins get around $17 mil a year through their TV contract, and
they're getting $26 mil this year in the national TV deal, which will
raise to $52 mil next year, and Samson is complaining rich teams
finding ways to hold on to some revenue-sharing money is the "biggest
danger in our game today"....
http://tinyurl.com/a3vvgue

And the city of Miami want the Marlins to pay for all those garage
spaces they are using for storage space...
http://tinyurl.com/aunjkje

Differing Takes On Jeffrey

Here are two views veering somewhat from the usual "Loria the
Destroyer" drumbeat, first from Dan Le Batard...
http://tinyurl.com/a99c8wn

...and then from Tim Marchman...
http://tinyurl.com/alnj3wr

Booty Bolstered

The Marlins actually do a goodie, giving Josh Booty a chance with the
Diamondbacks by signing away all claims to him...
http://tinyurl.com/bchxlhp

Why I Didn't Mention Loria/Samson This Week

Because it was too depressing.

Michael Jong tried to extract sensible info out of their blabberings...
http://tinyurl.com/aouehxs

...but we all know that, one of these days, it will ultimately end up
in some ugly battle royale...
http://tinyurl.com/afr6lpj