Dreaming of Cloud

Opening Third Day is Here

Our long winter wait has finally come to an end. After a couple of “for real” games in Japan as well as the stateside opening night unveiling Washington’s new ballpark yesterday, we get treated to a full slate of games for the first time in six months. With the exception of Boston and Oakland, every team will be playing today.

The Red Sox and A’s split their two games last week in what now seems more like last season than this season. Emil Brown made a huge baserunning gaffe in the opener, then bounced back to hit a home run in game two when Rich Harden tossed a three-hit, one-run gem while striking out nine over six innings. One might say Harden looked as if he was in mid-season form but that would mean he was on the disabled list so we’ll just say that the 26-year-old (yes, he’s still young) righthander pitched as well as anyone could have hoped.

Boston and Oakland will extend their series tomorrow with Daisuke Matsuzaka facing Joe Blanton for the second time in a week, followed by a rematch of Jon Lester and Harden on Wednesday. In one of the most bizarre “road trips” in recent memory, the Red Sox will travel to Toronto for a three-game set this weekend. The defending World Series champions will finally unpack their suitcases next week when they host Detroit in what promises to be one of the best series of the young season.

Over in the National League, the Chicago Cubs are hoping to win a World Series title for the first time in 100 years. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants will square off today to mark the 50th anniversary of their move to California.

Let’s take a look at today’s schedule with a few comments attached to each game. All times are ET.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Diamondbacks (Brandon Webb) at Reds (Aaron Harang), 2:10

In a pitching duel between two of the ten best starters (yes, Aaron Harang deserves that ranking) in baseball, the game will feature Dusty Baker’s return to the dugout. His influence is already being felt as Corey Patterson will play center field and bat lead-off for the Cincinnati Reds. After a horrendous spring, Brandon Webb will need to keep his sinker down at the Great American Ball Park to give the hitting-starved Arizona Diamondbacks a legitimate shot at winning their opener.

Brewers (Ben Sheets) at Cubs (Carlos Zambrano), 2:20

This game features the top two teams from the NL Central. Although the Chicago Cubs are the favorites to win the division, the Milwaukee Brewers won’t go down without a fight, especially if Ben Sheets is healthy enough to start 30 games this season. Carlos Zambrano begins the first of five years of his new $91.5M contract. Some pundits believe he will pitch better with his new deal in hand while skeptics wonder if the ace of the Cubbies may face more pressure than ever. Only time will tell.

Nationals (Matt Chico) at Phillies (Brett Myers), 3:05

Matt Chico is one of the worst starting pitchers in baseball. His strikeout and walk rates are well-below average, which spells trouble for an extreme flyball pitcher. Brett Myers, in his return to the rotation, won’t enjoy an easier matchup all year (at home against a mediocre hitting club and a weak pitcher, not to mention the fact that the Nationals will be coming down from their high after celebrating Ryan Zimmerman’s walk-off home run in the team’s opener at its new ballpark).

Giants (Barry Zito) at Dodgers (Brad Penny), 4:10

After three consecutive years of starting on Opening Day, Derek Lowe

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This entry was posted on Monday, March 31st, 2008 at 10:38 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.