Early developments worth noting

The Major League Baseball season began nine days ago. While it's too early to draw conclusions about some aspects of the season, early developments have begun to shed light on who will thrive, who will struggle and who will be left standing in September. The following notes are in no way guarantees; they are just observations that, based on past years and the first week of this one, appear to be safe bets. Here's what I've learned so far:\n• Pedro Martinez is again going to be the best pitcher in the American League. In his first two starts, Martinez gave up one run and seven hits in 16 innings. His 22 strikeouts lead the majors, 16 of which came in his shutout of Tampa Bay Sunday.\n• The new strike zone is having an impact. Most umpires are calling the high strike, causing batters to swing earlier in the count and thus speeding up the games -- a little.\n• A lot of home runs are going to be hit at Houston's Enron Field. Aramis Ramirez -- that's right, Aramis Ramirez -- hit three there Sunday. The Astros, playing half of their games in the new park for the first time last season, set the National League single-season record and should come close to breaking that record this year.\n• Craig Biggio's new swing works. He made some minor adjustments to his swing during the off-season while recovering from major knee surgery. He then proceeded to go five-for-five in Houston's season opener. Now hitting .462 through six games, Biggio appears primed for a big comeback. \n• Juan Gonzalez apparently likes hitting in Jacobs Field. Before this year, Gonzalez hit 12 home runs and drove in 36 in 30 games as a visitor to The Jake. Now as an Indian, Gonzalez has cracked three long balls to go along with six RBIs in five games.\n• The Cincinnati Reds are in desperate need of a healthy Ken Griffey Jr. and some starting pitching. He has been limited to three pinch-hit appearances after pulling a hamstring in spring training. The Reds, already paper thin in starting pitching, recently learned Scott Williamson needs elbow surgery and will miss the entire season. It also doesn't help that the left and center field fences were moved in at Cinergy Field to make way for their new ballpark. The natural grass looks nice, but it doesn't make up for the fact that Reds pitchers have a combined ERA of 4.87 and Cincinnati is 2-5.\n• The Milwaukee Brewers are going to like Miller Park. They officially opened up the new stadium by sweeping Cincinnati this weekend. The new park and a young core of talented hitters has enthusiasm in Milwaukee at the highest it's been in recent memory. After all, things couldn't be worse than they were the last decade or so in County Stadium. \n• The return to the unbalanced schedule is going to make for some great pennant races and a lot more meaningful matchups late in the season. \n• Carlos Delgado is in for a huge year and could make a strong run at the A.L. Triple Crown. He has already cleared the fences five times, driven in 11 runs and has hit at a .348 clip. His five home runs tie him with Arizona's Luis Gonzalez and L.A.'s Mark Grudzielanek for the most in the majors. \n• No matter how much of a non-factor he is or how much someone else deserves the spotlight, ESPN is going to tell us what Alex Rodriguez did every time he suits up for a game. I guess that simply by virtue of his quarter billion dollar status we all need to know that A-Rod went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts. \n• The Red Sox might not be doomed again after all. At the close of spring training, it appeared the Curse of the Bambino would nix Boston's title hopes before they even began the season.\n• Nomar Garciaparra had to have surgery, Manny Ramirez wasn't healthy, pitchers other than Pedro looked suspect at best and Carl Everett couldn't get along with manager Jimy Williams. Then Hideo Nomo throws a no-hitter, Martinez strikes out 16, Ramirez knocks in some runs and BoSox fans are hopeful again. Sorry, Bostonians, you're just delaying the inevitable.\n• And the final thing we learned from the first week is that the Cubs don't really seem like the Cubs anymore without Mark Grace. You can't replace No. 17's sweet stroke at the plate and smooth play in the field with guys like Matt Stairs and Ron Coomer. Best of luck in Arizona, Gracie.