Teams in tight races

First, the painfully obvious. Look over baseball's six divisions and wild-card races and you'll find few clear favorites. The Yanks, Red Sox or Rays in the AL East? The Dodgers, Snakes or even Giants in the NL West? Mets, Braves or Phillies? Heck, you can make a case for any team in the AL Central. And that's to say nothing of the crowded wild-card frays. In fact, only the Cubs stand as clear divisional favorites.

Likely, this will result in quite a few close races, and that means every game — for every contender — will be important. The silly emphasis on the September stretch drive obscures a vital fact: The games in April count just as much as the games in September. If a team blows the division by a single game, then that 9-2 yawner of a loss in April is as much to blame as the white-knuckled 4-3 defeat on the season's final day. With so many tight races ahead, the playoff hopefuls can't afford slow starts.

CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira

To those much is given, much is expected from, and that's especially the case in the Bronx. Sabathia and Teixeira, who have almost $350 million headed their way courtesy of the Yankees, will be relied upon to return the Yanks to the postseason.

In New York, the pressures are acute and immediate. If either player struggles early, you can bet the tabloids and fans will question whether he's worth all the money and whether he has the bearing to succeed in Gotham.

Anaheim is the favorite in the AL West, but the rotation is in tatters. Ace John Lackey will miss the first month of the season with an elbow strain, Kelvim Escobar is on the DL while his shoulder heals and Ervin Santana has a malady and a timetable similar to Lackey's. That means Saunders is the by-default No. 1 starter for a team than won 100 games a year ago.

The rotation is going to be problematic during April, so Saunders needs to pitch well. After Saunders and Jered Weaver, there's very little there — at least until those hobbled starters get healthy. In 2008, Saunders posted a nifty 3.41 ERA, but he did so despite middling peripheral numbers. That's why every projection system out there has him getting worse in 2009. Throw in the dead arm he's been battling and the pressures on him to carry the rotation in April, and Saunders is on the spot in a rare way. A slow start is something neither he nor his team can afford.

Jeff Francoeur

The Atlanta right fielder recently declared himself to be "dangerous again." After spending the winter reconstructing his swing, Francouer is poised to improve upon a miserable 2008. He produced in spring training and hit a bomb in the opener against Philly, so he's off to a good start. Still, if Francouer lapses into old habits, the doubts will creep in. The Braves aspire to make the postseason, and resurgent Francouer is essential to those hopes. He needs to prove early on that he's a new hitter.

Skip Schumaker

The Schumaker experiment is under way in St. Louis. Despite never playing second base as a pro, Schumaker will man the keystone for the Cardinals this season, and he'll also bat leadoff against right-handers. At best, Schumaker's defense will be passable, so he'll need to hit to stay in the lineup.

If he doesn't hit early or if his glovework is worse than expected, then Tony La Russa might start giving more playing time to Brendan Ryan. Patience is warranted, especially considering Schumaker is adapting to a new position, but do the Cards have time for a learning curve? Not if they hope to compete with the Cubs and Brewers.