Some might take the approach that this is only the second weekend of the season and tote that the proverbial "baseball is a marathon" phrase.
Ask anyone on the 1978 Red Sox how important every game is. Oh, what's that, Mike Torrez and pals aren't picking up the phone? Then try heading over to Flushing and ask the 2007 Mets how important it is to win as many games as possible, even now in the dear ol' month of April.
Had both of those teams won just one more game in April, they'd have made the postseason. The Red Sox were 11-9 in April 1978 and finished tied for 1st with the Yanks at 99-63. The Mets were 15-9 in April 2007 and finished 1 game behind the Phillies at 88-74. Instead, they pulled up lame on the final day of the season, after collapsing in the final weeks.
So don't pretend like this weekend isn't important, because it is - from a team standpoint. You can't really judge individuals in the first month of the season, but the difference between hitting .293 and .302 is slightly smaller than winning the AL East at 92-70 and losing the AL East at 91-71.
- La Monica