It is hard to write anything after hearing this stunning news. What a sad and tragic thing – 22 years old and with a world of potential. I believe two other people were killed in the car Adenhart was a passenger in. My condolences to all.
Hug your family …
Opening day finally arrives!
Beckett faced off against James Shields and, but for the third inning, Beckett was dominant. In 7 IP he allowed only one run, struck out ten, scattered two hits, and walked three. His fastball was consistently 93-95. For example, his last batter faced, Gabe Gross, faced this cheese:
Not bad for pitches 91, 92 and 93.
I saw something on MLB Tonight that said Beckett was only the 4th opening day pitcher to allow 2 hits or less and strike out more then 10. Impressive.
On the Rays side, Shields looked pretty good but not as sharp as Rays fans have come to expect. One thing that has bugged me about Shields is his nickname – Big Game James. I mean, come on. He got this name before he’d even pitched one playoff game. That just isn’t right.
. . . . . . .
Other things I noticed from yesterday’s games:
Two on, two out, one-run lead, eighth inning.
Jim Thome batting.
You have Joakim Soria.
You use Kyle Farnsworth.
Gone.
I know it happens all the time, but it’s really freaking stupid every single time. This is what the creation of the closer position has wrought: teams losing games, frequently, without using their best reliever, for no reason other than the misguided notion that getting three outs is their role, and getting four isn’t.
(For that matter, you also have Ron Mahay. Why did you acquire him if not to have him face Jim Thome in the eighth inning of a one-run game? Ron Gardenhire lost the division last year for want of a similar clue and Jose Mijares.)
Some people deserve to lose.
Today’s Sox game – Lester v. Kazmir, the battle of the lefties.
Trevor Cahill makes his major league debut tonight for the Oakland A’s against the Angels and Dustin Moseley. The other pitcher most often discussed with Cahill is Brett Anderson who makes his debut (skipping AAA as well) on Thursday.
The A’s five man rotation (now that Duchscherer is on the DL) is made up of pitchers who are all 26 or younger. That has not happened since the 1978 Brewers and the last team before that was the 1968 A’s (with a rotation of Hunter, Dobson, Nash, Odom and Krausse).
Cahill has had an impressive two seasons in the minors and made the starting rotation this spring. I find it a lot of fun to watch the young guys work their way into a big league rotation and will no doubt watch some of Cahill’s start tonight.
This is what he did in the minors:
2008 Statistics – Age 20
Level W L ERA IP K BB WHIP
A+ 5 4 2.78 87.1 103 31 0.95
AA 6 1 2.19 37.0 33 19 1.16
2007 Statistics – Age 19
A 11 4 2.73 105.1 117 40 1.18
He is definitely one worth watching. He was the A’s Organization Pitcher of the Year for the last two years and has a world of potential. The question, though, is whether he is ready to face major league hitters with no AAA experience and only seven games at the AA level. I like Cahill a lot but you have to wonder if it’s a good idea to let him face major league hitters at such a young age. Cahill’s spring was less then stellar so there is some concern that he may be in over his head.
Ah, to be 21 and taking the mound in a major league game. That’s gotta be a thrill.
Rain, rain and more rain. Whose idea was it for the Sox to open in Boston? The last time was 2002 and before that was 1996. I would suggest that the Sox should never open at home. My son’s little league season the past three years has been plagued with rain cancellations. You get all ready for opening day and then … nothing.
So, instead of the Sox I watched some of the Mets v. Reds game. Santana looked pretty good – wild in the first inning but then pretty good after that. Not his best, but acceptable. I am not a Mets fan but I have Santana on two of my fantasy teams and I love the guy. I hope to read that he felt no lingering tightness in his elbow or whatever his issue was this spring. I imagine Mets fans must have breathed a sigh of relief.
The Reds should be pretty excited about their offense. Jay Bruce was fooled by a Santana offering and still managed to flick it off the wall in deep left center. He looks impressive.
. . . . .
Now, I don’t want to get too giddy about CC’s poor outing against the O’s (he looked out of sync) but, I am a Sox fan. As the info on the TV indicated, he had a bad April last year and then went wild so there really should be no cause for concern; it is just nice when the season starts off not as the Yankee’s expected.
In terms of the O’s, I liked what I saw from Adam Jones. He looked more selective and really in control of himself (a four pitch walk in his first at bat). He may be headed to a big year and really make the Mariners regret their trade.
Last on my viewing radar tonight is the Liriano/King Felix matchup. I have them both on one of my fantasy teams. They are the kind of pitchers you stop everything to watch. Here’s to hoping we see a pitching duel tonight.
