April 9 -- NY LOVES JIMMY

NEW YORK -- Greetings from Shea Stadium. Yes, I finally made it.

It's the home-opener here for the Mets, and as expected, Jimmy Rollins was booed during the pregame introductions. Truth is, most of the Phillies were booed. But with Rollins, the boos began as soon as announcer Howie Rose said the words, "Shortstop, No. 11 ..." With that out of their system, the packed house booed Rollins more mildly when he stepped into the box for his first at-bat. And, for the record, the man who said the Phillies are "the team to beat" in the NL East opened the game by grounding to third baseman David Wright. Rollins was a popular target for some New York writers this morning. Meanwhile, Mets (and former Phils) closer Billy Wagner held court for the Philly scribes in the Mets clubhouse. My colleague, Martin Frank, will have more on that in tomorrow's News Journal.

Also, as expected, RHP Jon Lieber and RHP Francisco Rosario have joined the Phillies here. Both are active and able to be used out of the bullpen today. One lineup note: Abraham Nunez is making his first start of the season at third base, in place of slumping Wes Helms.

More later.