If you're keeping score, that's 1 for Joba in pen  —  News flash: New Yorkers can be brusque, impolite and sometimes even rude.  Joba Chamberlain reporting.  Film at 11.  —  Thanks, Joba, for restating the obvious for those of us who can be honest about ourselves.

Skeptics' heat is on Sabathia … BALTIMORE - The Yankees insist CC Sabathia is healthy, but the heating pad, a dip in velocity and his awful results on Opening Day are causing some knowledgeable baseball observers to wonder what was happening when the lefty got rocked by the Orioles.

The World Series Rings of the 21st Century  —  This afternoon, for the first time since 1981, the Philadelphia Phillies presented their players and staff with some Bling.  —  Specifically, World Series Championship Bling.  —  And there it is.  That puppy is loaded with diamonds.  Holy crap.

Triple-A notes: Tomko as closer, Jackson hitting sixth  —  Just to triple check, I sent Dan Giese another text message this afternoon.  —  “Heard anything yet on waivers?”  —  “Not yet”  —  Some other notes from today's Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees media day...  Brett Tomko will be the Triple-A closer

Open for business  —  Behind Beckett, workmanlike Sox get the job done  —  Nothing makes the chilly temperature rise like an Opening Day win, and with it a pristine record that evokes idyllic hopes of 162-0.  It came yesterday, a near-perfect performance in the Red Sox' second stab at game No. 1 …

YES, Verizon reach Video-on-Demand agreement  —  Verizon FiOS TV First to offer YES' Yankees Games On-Demand in New York Area  —  NEW YORK - The YES Network, the most-watched regional sports network in the country for the past six years, and Verizon, the only major provider that delivers …

Glavine sharp in simulated game in Gwinnett  —  The Gwinnett Braves travel to Charlotte today to open their inaugural season Thursday against the Knights with prospect Tommy Hanson on the mound.  —  He'll be followed in the rotation by Jo-Jo Reyes, James Parr, Charlie Morton and Todd Redmond.

Opening Day, And The Gloves Come Off.  —  And now I know why God, in His infinite wisdom, did not want me to attend Opening Day.  —  I am, as many of you know, a rather patient baseball fan.  I am a rather forgiving baseball fan.  I would not have survived as a Royals fan if I was not.

It won't be around much longer  —  They're started dismantling the old Yankee Stadium, stripping out the grass and now they're taking down the outfield walls.  This part of the wall had very little wear and tear as Bobby Abreu rarely touched it.  —  They also knocked part of a wall on 161st St …

Let's Debate: Who won Yahoo! Sports Build-a-Ballclub feature?  —  Kudos to my columnist-side colleagues here at Yahoo! Sports MLB for putting together a fantastic “Build-a-Ball Club” feature that's one of today's absolute must-reads in the baseball world.  —  If you haven't read it yet …

Projecting politics & baseball with Nate Silver  —  Until last year, Nate Silver was a minor celebrity among the sorts of baseball fans who value VORP far more than say, RBIs (shady characters such as myself, in other words.)  Then, Nate started a little Web site called fivethirtyeight.com.

Welcome to my blog on MASNsports.com!  —  Thanks to MASN and CAA, I'm going to be doing something that, to be honest with you... I've never done before.  —  This is going to be new to me, and I hope I can help a lot of you understand the game a little better and what we go through during spring training and the regular season.

For Mets' offense, win is only cold comfort  —  CINCINNATI - With temperatures in the high 30s, and a steady rain falling at Great American Ball Park, the Mets were forced to take batting practice indoors before Monday's season opener against the Reds.  After seven weeks in the balmy climate …

Gaudin Weighs Options  —  Chad Gaudin cleared waivers, which means the Chicago Cubs have to pay his $2 million salary.  —  Now the bargain hunters can check in, and the Rockies are among teams that have contacted agent Larry Reynolds.  —  The Rockies would like to sign Gaudin to a minor-league contract …