Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte showed up at spring training and quickly found out that neither one is Houston's No. 1 starter.
That distinction belongs to Roy Oswalt, picked by Astros manager Jimy Williams to pitch opening day against Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants.
''Jimy and I talked about it a couple of weeks ago and that's how we talked about it, so it's no surprise to us,'' Clemens said Sunday in Kissimmee, Fla. ''To me, all the guys are deserving. We've all had our opportunities to start opening day.''
Oswalt, one of three holdovers from last year's rotation along with Wade Miller and Tim Redding, is one of the best young pitchers in baseball. But he was hampered by chronic groin injuries in 2003 and had surgery in the offseason to correct the problem.
Ex-Yankees Clemens and Pettitte were Houston's two big offseason additions, but Williams will go with the 26-year-old Oswalt at home on April 5.
Pettitte will go second in a splendid rotation, followed by his pal Clemens. Miller, the club's opening day starter in 2002, will pitch fourth, and Redding is No. 5.
''He's got a lot of pitching over there,'' Yankees manager Joe Torre said in Tampa.
Oswalt, a 19-game winner in 2002, was on the disabled list three times last year. His 2.92 ERA the last three seasons is actually better than that of Clemens or Pettitte.
''If I go first or I go third it doesn't matter,'' Oswalt said. ''It's an honor, so of course it's special, but I don't see (the others) behind me. I see them with me.''
Other pitchers selected Sunday as probable opening day starters were Baltimore's Sidney Ponson, San Diego's Brian Lawrence and Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox.
In Tampa, Alex Rodriguez took more grounders at third base and acknowledged his friendship with Derek Jeter had deteriorated in recent years.
Once best buddies -- they kidded on the field and crossed paths on the dating scene -- the new Yankees teammates have never been the same since A-Rod criticized Jeter's skills and leadership in early 2001.
"When we came up, we were kind of tied at the hip,'' Rodriguez said. ''We haven't been as tight the last three years.''
The player the Yankees traded for Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano, put on a Texas Rangers uniform in Surprise, Ariz., and worked out with his new teammates for the first time.
The two-time All-Star took some batting practice in the cage and played long toss with third baseman Herbert Perry and outfielder Kevin Mench.
Also in Surprise, the Kansas City Royals signed left-hander Greg Swindell to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. He didn't pitch in the majors last season after spending 2002 with Arizona.
In Jupiter, Fla., St. Louis Cardinals starter Woody Williams is struggling with shoulder tendinitis. Williams went 18-9 with a 3.87 ERA last season. Manager Tony La Russa said he plans to bring the right-hander along slowly.
Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Freddy Sanchez might not be ready to start the season because of a right ankle injury.
Sanchez, a top prospect expected to compete for the starting second base job this spring in Bradenton, Fla., could be out until May.
''It's the most disappointing thing I've had to go through in my career,'' he said. ''I had a chance to compete for a job and then this happens.''
In Tucson, Ariz., Diamondbacks slugger Luis Gonzalez went through his first spring training workout, hoping an offseason program to strengthen the muscles around his right elbow injury will hold up through a 162-game season.
Gonzalez decided against surgery to repair a half-torn ligament that would have forced him to miss the entire 2004 season.
''I'm excited to be out there this year,'' he said. ''It's going to take a lot to get me off the field.''
In Sarasota, Fla., Cincinnati Reds right-hander Danny Graves is excited about moving back to the bullpen after a failed one-year experiment as a starter.
''I was like a fish out of water,'' Graves said.
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