Everything appeared to be in order for the Philadelphia Phillies as the 2009 Major League Baseball season got started Sunday night in Philadelphia. Led by their loveable mascot, the Phillie Phanatic, the Phillies players trotted through the crowds of adoring fans and down onto the field as their 2008 World Series Championship banner was hoisted prior to Sunday night's first pitch.

Unfortunately for them, the only thing that was missing from tonight's festivities was their high powered offense. The team they were facing however, the Atlanta Braves, had absolutely no problems discovering their own as Phillies starting pitcher Brett Myers was tatooed for three home runs in the first two innings (a fourth was determined to be a double) and the Braves never looked back.

Meanwhile, Derek Lowe, one of Atlanta's main off-season acquisitions, looked every bit the part of the ace he was signed to be.

Hurling 8 shutout innings, Lowe stifled Phillies hitters with a dominant sinker and crippling slider that no one ever seemed close to figuring out. Allowing only two hits and walking none, Lowe easily justified his lucrative off-season deal with the Braves; who signed him to serve as the anchor for their starting rotation.

In fact, everything seemed to go perfectly for Atlanta tonight. Their young All-Star catcher, Brian McCann, capitalized off a misplaced Myers change-up with a two-run blast in the first. Jeff Francouer, who struggled mightily last season and even had a stint down in the minors, demonstrated that his problems are behind him by roping a shot into the left field stands in his first plate appearance of the season. Even their young rookie center-fielder, Jordan Schafer, hit a home run in his first major league at bat, becoming only the 99th player in MLB history to accomplish the feat.

So the question that comes to mind, was Brett Myers really that bad for the Phillies tonight, or is there more to this Atlanta Braves team than most pundits are giving them credit for? Perhaps a little bit of both.

The club's downfall a year ago was due to a complete lack of starting pitching as the team opted for veteran pitching to carry them through the season; very old veteran pitching. The result was not surprising as three of their starters went onto the DL, and their most reliable pitcher turned out to be the rookie pitcher obtained from the Detroit Tigers in the Edgar Renteria deal, Jair Jurrjens.

Braves general manager, Frank Wren, addressed the team's glaring need by signing the reliable Derek Lowe as a free agent, and trading for the equally durable Javier Vazquez from the Chicago White Sox this past off-season, both of whom regularly toss over 200 innings a season. Wren also brought in some international flavor by signing Japanese pitcher Kenshin Kawakami. These three, together with Jurrjens and the future Hall of Fame pitcher, Tom Glavine, combine to provide the Braves with a much more formidable starting rotation.

Having the fire hurling pitching phemon, Tommy Hanson (who's rated as one of the top 5 prospects in the game by Baseball America), at the ready in Triple-A Gwinnett can't hurt either.

The key to Atlanta's success or failure this year however will most likely rest on the shoulders of the N.L.'s reigning batting champion, Chipper Jones, and whether or not he can remain healthy. Jones has not played over 140 games in a season since 2003 and has only played an average of 120 over the past four seasons. The Braves will need him to stay healthy this year if they are going to contend in arguably the N.L's most competitive division, if not the most competitive division in all of baseball.

With the defending World Champs and the New York Mets, a team that many believe will win or at least play for the N.L. Pennant playing in the same division, winning the N.L. East will be no small order.

It stands to reason though that if things keep going Atlanta's way this season and they remain healthy, the team could very well shock the baseball world and knock off the Phillies from the perch as Division Champions or at least give them or the Mets a run for the N.L. Wild Card.

Only time will tell.