(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Leading the league in runs scored. Leading the league in home runs. Second in total bases. Leading the league in RBI’s. Second in batting average. First in On Base Percentage. First in Slugging Percentage.

Chris Young is first in the league in runs scored. CY tied for 2nd in home runs. Mark Reynolds tied for second in RBI’s. Justin Upton 4th in Slugging Percentage.

Sounds like the Dbacks might be off to a pretty good start right?

Oh yeah, i forgot: They also have the second lowest ERA in the majors and third lowest batting average against.

All of this sounds like a recipe for a 10-4 start to the season for the red-hot Diamondbacks.

Hey NL West, the NL, and baseball in general: Better watch out, these Diamondbacks are on fire.

Coming into the season, everyone figured the pitching would be there. With last year’s AL All-star starting pitcher Dan Haren combining with Cy Young winner Brandon Webb at the top of the rotation, that figured to be a strength for the Dbacks. It was hard to tell what you would get from Randy Johnson and Micah Owings, who was coming off a terrible spring (0-2, ERA north of 9.5), but at least at the top you had stability. The bullpen figured to be strong, with the lone question mark being the closer.

Well, Randy made his first start yesterday and looked pretty good, all things considered. If the defense had shown up at all, he would have had the win. Owings has been spectacular, going 3-0 so far. The bullpen, with the exception of the closer spot (get to that later), has been solid as well.

What people weren’t sure about coming into the season was the Diamondbacks offense. Everyone knows about the offensive woes last season, getting outscored over the course of the season, struggling to score runs, batting averages 4o points or more south of where they should be, etc.

This year that has seemed to turn around. Drew is batting near .300. Upton is hitting .388. Conor Jackson is at .313. Byrnes is at .291.

I realize the season is still young, but if nothing else the start will give confidence to all our young guns for the rest of the season. That’s all these young guys need, a little confidence and the knowledge that they belong here and can hit at this level.

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I mentioned that the Dbacks were 10-4 on the season, but what i didn’t mention is who they’ve beat. In the middle of a 22-game stretch against NL West Division foes, the Dbackshave gone 9-2 against the likes of Colorado, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Besides the great overall start, they are off to a great start in their own division, which is always big.

I realize seasons are not won in April, but they can be lost. The Dbackshave done the work and put themselves in a great position to start a season in which they have high expectations. Up to this point, they have shown why those expectations were so high to begin with.

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