The Baltimore Orioles got the 2014 season off to a positive start yesterday with a 2-1 victory over the defending champion Boston Red Sox. Clearly, this means the birds are destined for October glory while tears will stream like a waterfall down Fenway’s green monster all season! Ok, maybe not. Realistically, this game didn’t mean any more than the other 161 contests still to come. But an Opening Day win is still better than an Opening Day loss, and earning it against the Red Sox was a sweet feeling for the team and its fans. And since the birds are off today, now is as good a time as any to share some thoughts on the win.

• Let’s start off with the hero of the game, newcomer Nelson Cruz. The late-spring signing paid immediate dividends, scoring both of the Baltimore runs in the game. The highlight was his solo homer (or “Cruz Missile,” as members of the reddit.com Orioles community are already calling it) in the 7th inning off of starter Jon Lester that proved to be the winning run. Cruz also answered some of the negative talk about his defensive skills with a solid performance in left field that included a juggling catch that saved at least one early run. He won’t win any Gold Gloves in the outfield and will likely spend a lot of time in the designated hitter role, but if he can prove to be a consistent defender in the outfield, Cruz will give Buck Showalter even more flexibility with his lineup.

• Chris Tillman put on a gutsy performance in his first Opening Day start. It wasn’t as efficient as he probably would have liked, as he was only able to get through five innings of work thanks to a quickly inflated pitch count. But he consistently attacked the strike zone and was able to fight out of some tough situations. Tillman ended the day with one run allowed on seven hits, with one walk and four strikeouts. It wasn’t the ideal outing for your team’s ace, but I’m not worried for several reasons. First, he was facing a brutal lineup that figures to be one of the best in the American League. And secondly, it’s not at all unusual for pitchers to struggle to find a groove early in the season. What’s encouraging is that Tillman, while not entirely comfortable throughout the game, was able to limit the damage and keep the game under control. That’s promising for a guy that will need to carry a big part of the load if this team will return to the playoffs in 2014.

• Tommy Hunter’s performance in the closer role draws a lot of parallels to Tillman’s outing, as he didn’t have his best stuff and appeared to be dealing with a bit of the Opening Day jitters (as demonstrated when he hit the first batter he faced). He opened the door for a Boston comeback in the ninth before composing himself and slamming it shut with a game-ending strikeout of Jackie Bradley, Jr. Will Hunter be able to handle the rigors of closing on a regular basis? Only time will tell. Tommy was great out of the pen in 2013 but also has the tendency to give up a lot of home runs. If he can limit the long balls, I don’t see any reason why he can’t be effective and have a solid save percentage. But I also think he’ll get into enough trouble at times to put more strain on the hearts of Baltimoreans who already have cardiovascular disease thanks to Jim Johnson’s performances last year. (Speaking of Jim, his career with the A’s got off to a rough start yesterday. Johnson came into the 9th inning with a scoreless tie and promptly gave up two runs to take the loss. Ouch.)

• Zach Britton’s sinker was absolutely filthy yesterday and has been all spring. He faced seven batters and got six outs, all on grounders. If he can be that effective with his signature pitch this season, it could open any number of doors for him. It may be possible for Britton to work his way into the rotation if injuries or inefficiencies occur, and I would think he’d be in consideration for the closer role if Hunter struggles. Either way, it’ll be exciting to see if he can maintain this level of performance going forward.

• An unheralded hero from Opening Day was Ryan Flaherty. The former Rule 5 pick didn’t have a hit or drive in a run, but he played exceptional defense at third base. He’s just keeping that spot warm for Manny Machado, but Buck will find ways to keep Flaherty in the lineup if he keeps playing like he did yesterday.

• It was great to see Jonathan Schoop come up with a hit in his first Opening Day start. Coming into spring training, the expectation was for Schoop to start the season at Triple-A Norfolk, but no one apparently told him that. Schoop smacked the ball all over Florida during Grapefruit League play and claimed the spot that most had tapped Jemile Weeks to win. I expect him to stay on the team once Machado comes back and rotate at second base with Flaherty.

• If the Orioles don’t extend J.J. Hardy next season, they could be looking at an everyday infield of Chris Davis (1B), Jonathan Schoop (2B), Manny Machado (SS), and Ryan Flaherty (3B) in 2015. While it remains to be seen if that group could produce the kind of offense that a Hardy-led infield can manage, it certainly doesn’t seem like there would be any sort of drop-off defensively. While I’d love to see Hardy stay with the team (especially since the Yankees would grab him in a heartbeat if he hit free agency), solid performances at the plate from Schoop and Flaherty in 2014 would make it less of a blow if he departs.