Two games into the 2011 Major League Baseball season and the Brewers are without a victory.

Closer John Axford has blown a save. Newly-acquired Shaun Marcum gave up four runs in his debut. Key players remain on the disabled list.

All is lost, isn't it?

OK, now that we've indulged the fanatical element of the population, let's pause quick for two very important thoughts.

First of all: baseball is back. Hallelujah.

Second, and most importantly: there are 160 games remaining.

Yeah, it's been a rough start for the Brewers who are a popular pick in the NL Central thanks to their intimidating offense and greatly improved starting pitching. But lets not forget that the Cincinnati Reds, despite their penchant for late-inning heroics (45 come-from-behind victories in 2010), are a pretty darn good baseball team with young, talented pitchers and a pretty staunch offense of their own -- big reasons the Reds won the division by five games a year ago.

No team (with perhaps the exception of the '55 Brooklyn Dodgers) has ever won a division in April though we have seen teams play themselves into a big hole (just look back a year ago) in the first few weeks of the year.

There is no reason to be concerned right now. It's two games. That's 0.01234568 percent of the season. This team might not be the most imposing in the history of baseball, but it is nowhere near as bad as the last two were.

So the advice here is simply to relax. Enjoy the fact that baseball is back. Fresh air, sunshine and grilling season is right around the corner. At least wait until there's something better to do before giving up on the team for the year.

No surprise: Butler is back in the National Championship Game again and already the "Cinderella" and "underdog" references are being thrown around like stock options during the dot-com boom.

Guess what? The Bulldogs are no fairy tale story.

Last year, yes; it was a feel-good story. The small (enrollment of 4,400) liberal-arts college in Indianapolis came within inches of a national championship last year. Gordon Haywood's shot was oh, so close.

This time, though, the "out of nowhere," "Cinderella story" analogy doesn't fit (though rest assured, CBS will beat the idea to death over the next 24 hours).

Why do mid-major schools like Butler, which plays in the Horizon League with UW-Milwaukee, fare so well in situations like this? It's not hard to figure out. Unlike the top programs, which bring in highly-touted recruits who jump to the NBA after a year or two, mid-majors more often than not keep talented players for four years. During that time, they learn the system. The focus on fundamentals because they don't have the highlight-reel moves. They don't have the egos so they're more likely to respond to coaching.

Some call it parity. Others call it luck. But you can't deny that head coach Brad Stevens has built the Bulldogs into a model program, surpassing the example set several years ago by Gonzaga.

Spoiled: It was sunny and 48 degrees Saturday during the Brewers' Rising Stars Game at Miller Park and, as expected, the roof was closed. It was open last year on Opening Day but that's not likely Monday, with the forecast calling for morning showers and a high of about 45.

Still, with the mercury expected to creep into the 50s during the weekend, when the Cubs come to town, and the clouds expected to give way to sunshine, here's to hoping the Brewers open the darn roof. Yes, it will be chilly but there was a time in Milwaukee when we brought blankets and dressed for the weather when attending a game.

The Miller Park roof is a wonderful thing -- a big reason the team has drawn so well since opening in 2001 -- but it needs to be open much more often.

Larry King Lounge: The new scoreboard at Miller Park has some bugs to work out before Monday but boy is it something nice ... A highlight from the Rising Stars Game Saturday was watching relievers playing long-toss in left field while the game was in progress. The best part was the 1:55 time of game ... More people (11,312) attended that game than the Indians-White Sox game Saturday in Cleveland (9,853) ... If you haven't seen the Brewers new commercial campaign yet, be sure to check it out. They're pretty funny -- especially the one with Rickie Weeks ... Remember when Amir Johnson was in Bucks camp? His 9.7 points and 6.5 rebounds would look pretty good in the team stat package ... Brandon Jennings needs to get bigger ... Keep an eye on Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' manager Matt Erickson. The former Brewers infielder and Appleton native will be a rising star amongst coaches ... Tickets to the U.S. Amateur Open, set for August at Erin Hills, will be free thanks to M&I Bank. Though, if you're boycotting, you probably shouldn't take the tickets.