Well we're a little late to the starting gate on this one because MLB had the gall to schedule everyone for a very early start. It's hard going to classes and finding the time to write about baseball! But we're excited to move on to previewing today's action instead of dwelling on yesterday's Braves-Phillies abomination...c'mon, guys, 7 runs isn't enough? SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO:
Ok, just kidding. There's more ado. We'd like to point out that Tigers - Blue Jays would've absolutely been our game to watch because of Rick Porcello's debut. But that's almost halfway over, and if you happen to be reading this right now AND be curious as to how Rick Porcello is doing, well, you'll be happy to know that he is crusing along. 1 run and 5 hits allowed in 4 innings thusfar. Also, John Danks makes his season debut tonight, which should be fun, and Dodgers phenom Clayton Kershaw, armed with Public Enemy Number 1, takes the hill against the uninspiring Padres. NOW WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, we pick:
Oakland Athletics (2-1) vs. Los Angeles Angels (1-2)
We chose this game mostly because we want to see how the Angels rebound from losing Nick Adenhart. It will be an emotional scene in Anaheim, and we feel the game deserves our respect and attention. However, it's also notable for the fact that the other A's phenom pitcher, Brett Anderson (as opposed to Trevor Cahill), makes his first MLB start tonight. Tough environment to do it in, especially for a rookie; he's going to be tested early, we suspect. He definitely has the stuff to succeed, but the biggest question with rookies is often how they can play the mental game, and an emotional night like this will be could spell trouble for the rook.
Opposing him is Jered Weaver, the one healthy member of the Angels' projected top-5 starters, though even he's had some soreness in Spring Training. We mentioned this before, but it seems to be worth revisiting: Angels' pitchers are having a rough and tragic go of it this year. Adenhart, of course, really pulls at the hearts of fans everywhere. His time was tragic and short. The rest of the pitchers aren't tragic so much as a comedy of injuries; Kelvin Escobar's going to miss significant time with a setback in his recovery from a torn labrum, John Lackey's going to miss most of April, and Ervin Santana's going to miss most of April and then some, and could be out for much longer. We said before that the job of Angels' Starting Pitcher deserves a reality show on the Discovery Channel; we rather regret that joke today, but the point stands.
Overall, we think the Angels are going to win it for Adenhart. We're sentimental like that we suppose, but...how do you lose a game like this?
KCSD GOTD Record: 3-1
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