Morning Links

Giants Take A 2-0 Lead In The Series:  Wow… I thought this would be a close series, both in the box score and going down to a 6th or 7th game, but so far it has been anything but. The Giants have taken advantage of their home field, winning both of the first two games. Not only did the Giants win the games, but they are simply blowing out the Rangers. The Giants have a 20-7 run advantage in two games, and have had no issues against Cliff Lee, and the Rangers bullpen. The Giants did only manage 2 runs against C.J. Wilson last night, before he left with a blister, but that is two more runs than what the Rangers put up against Matt Cain. Cain pitched brilliantly last night, absolutely shutting down the Rangers mighty offense. Texas is supposed to have one of the best lineups in baseball, but they went quietly into the night yesterday. This series is far from over yet, but the Rangers need to turn it around if they want a chance. They should fair better at home, where they can have their DH back, but the Giants have the momentum now.

Wizards Hit A ‘Wall’: It was an ugly game on all counts (unless you are a Magic fan), as the Wizards and their rookie John Wall, got embarrassed in their 2010-2011 season debut. The Magic beat Washington by 29 points, and showed Washington that they are still a bit aways from playing with the big boys in the East. Now the Wizards are a young team so you expect growing pains, but OUCH did that hurt. Their young forwards and centers, did nothing as Al Thornton, Andray Blatche, JaVale McGee, Yi Jianlian, Hilton Armstrong, and rookies Trevor Booker and Hamady Ndiaye combined for just 35 points (or one point less than what Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis combined for). With no inside help, it fell on Wall and the rest of the guards to keep the game close. While the Wizards got solid performances from Wall, Kirk Hinrich and backup Cartier Martin, they couldn’t match up with the Magic’s talent or defense.

It’s a long season so I wouldn’t write off Wall or the Wizards just yet, but I’m not sure if Washington has the inside game to go along with their perimeter play. Washington will need a couple of their big men to step up this season if they hope to win more than 25-30 games. Not only do they need to step up from an offensive stand point, but they need to play better defense as well. The Wizards were basically a non-factor in the paint last night, and that needs to change if they want to compete (not contend, but compete). Washington was without Gilbert Arenas last night, so that could be part of the blame, but at the same time Arenas has a history of injuries so you had to know you weren’t going to get 82 games out of him. Also, lets be honest if the Wizards have their way Arenas will be traded by the time this season is out. Arenas or no Arenas, this team needs to step up to give Wall support, as he can’t be shooting the ball as much as he did last night. Wall had 10 more shots than the next highest shooter, and that simply can’t happen if the Wizards want to win.