Every baseball team has its traditions. At Safeco Field, you’ve gotta do the sushi. In Cincinnati, you’ve got to do the smokies. In New York, when watching the Yankees, you’ve got to be an ignorant douchebag. In LA, you have to leave during the seventh inning stretch, and in Toronto, you have to say, "Who is pitching for us again?" and pound away on your cellphone.

There’s no arguing about these – they’re just tradition. They go without saying.

The Vancouver version of baseball tradition is to lose the home opener (or any sold-out game) horribly.

What’s it been, like, eighteen years since the C’s won their home opener? Perhaps not quite that much, but it sure feels like it, and 2009 was no exception.

The C’s sent Joselito Adames to the mound, and he improved upon his Stockton form slightly, bringing his minors ERA down to 4.00 with a 5 inning, 2ER effort that saw him strike out 4 and walk a pair.

But then we entered the Ronny Morla zone and everything went to heck… ‘Morla less’.

With six hits and two walks surrendered in 1.1 innings pitched, The Mauler gave up three earned runs to put the C’s well and truly into unwinnable territory.

Jonathan Joseph apparently thought Morla’s performance was worth imitating, because he dished four earned runs in a single inning, giving the Flipperkids an extra digit on the scoreboard.

With the game basically lost by pitchers, the C’s bats didn’t pull much out of the bag to keep the fans entertained on opening day.

6′2" Mississippi born right fielder Rashun Dixon put one over the wall to at least end the shut-out, and 1B Wilfredo Sosa and 2B Nino Leyja joined the party with a pair of singles each, but Everett’s LF Ryan "They Come To Snuff The" Royster cancelled them out all by himself with a 4-5 night, driving in three runs and knocking out a double (first game report of the season and we’ve already got an Alice in Chains reference!).

Everett CF Kalian Sams chipped in with a 3-5 night with 3 more RBIs and Fred "Maria" Bello didn’t suck, rolling out with two doubles and 2 walks from 3 ABs. Pitchers Lewis, Reid and Rios only gave up one scoring hit between them and 5,132 fans kicked the seat in front of them in boredom until the fireworks kicked in.

Sunday saw a turnaround in form as the C’s rode some top notch hurling to a 3-1 victory. The bats weren’t exactly aflame, but Rashun "Mason" Dixon was again the star for the Canadians, rolling out a 2-4 game, driving in one.

Outfielder Connor "Crumbly" Crumbliss (pictured above) registered a triple, and DH Kent "John Boy" Walton drove one in on a 1-4 night.

But it was the pitching that ate the frogs Sunday afternoon, as Panama’s own Ricardo Penalba threw 5 innings of 7K, 4H, 0BB, 0ER ball. Northwestern College recruit Pat Schultz broke up the shutout, giving away 3 walks and a pair of hits in a 2.2IP, 1ER spell, but closer Jose "Goose" Guzman shut it down for the final four outs, locking down the victory for the boys in red and white in front of 4,193.

Monday brought about a chance to win the opening series of the season, and the C’s didn’t throw that chance away with another spell of serious pitching and vengeful offense.

Nino "The Playa" Leyja took his average to .364 with a 205 night, driving in one, while John Boy Walton drove in two on the back of a 2-4 night from the DH spot. AA drop-down catcher Gabriel Ortiz went 2-4 at the plate, driving in two more, but he should, being as he was hitting .280 in the Texas League before he came down to short-season ball. 3B Ryne Jernigan brought up the bottom end, going 1-2 with a pair of doubles and a ribby.

But all of that was mere window dressing as the pitching foursome of Hector Garcia, Kyle Christensen, Paul Smyth, and Daniel Straily came in with furious anger, destroying all before them. In striking out the side in the one inning he tossed, Smyth gets the nod of the night.

The C’s traveled to the Dustbowl Tuesday night for the first game in the first road series of the year against the Tri-City Dust Devils. It was a tight one, but a two-run opening frame for the home team and a backup run in the 5th was enough to get the dusty ones home.

John Boy and The Playa once again provided the offensive push with a pair of 2-4 outings, while Crumbly drew two walks in a 0-2 night. Dixon and catcher Rodney Rutherford drove in a run a piece, but Tri-City’s tight hurling kept the good guys at bay with a 3-2 loss.

First impressions? Obviously this is a very different team than the one that will grace the field in a few weeks time, when draftees sign contracts. But considering the fact that we’re usually playing a ragtag group of Dominicans bound for the Arizona League at this stage of the season most years (and this year is little exception) due to the inevitable wait for draftees, a 2-4 start is nothing to sneeze at.

The pitching has shown life, and John Boy, Mason-Dixon and The Playa are certainly showing spark with the bat.

If anyone can pull a clubhouse together to weather the early storm, it’s Rick Magnante. The big test will be how these guys react when the bonus babies arrive and compete with them for spots. Last season, that’s when the C’s fell to pieces. The year before, it spurred them to dominance.

This year…?