I really dislike when people get too wrapped up in early season results. Hell, we just had a column get posted on Tuesday talking about when the right time to give up on playoff hopes is. Since that column has run, the Rays are 2-0, the Indians are 1-1 (and coming off of a 15-4 smashing of the Blue Jays on Wednesday), and the Pirates are 1-1, scoring three in the ninth on Wednesday to beat the first place Brewers. Gee, it’s almost like getting too consumed with early season results is ridiculous and shouldn’t happen! Unless you’re a fan of the Diamondbacks, Astros, or Cubs, your towel shouldn’t be thrown in yet.
Game of the Night: Astros 5, Rangerrs 4. The Rangers dragged 5 1/3 solid innings out of Nick Tepesch, something they needed given the terrible state of their rotation. Then, their bullpen took over, and all hell broke loose. The sole run that was charged to Tepesch was actually allowed by Aaron Poreda, who faced four batters in the sixth and allowed a walk and three singles. That nonsense cut the Texas lead to 4-2. In the seventh, Jose Altuve led off with a single, and George Springer blasted a two-run homer to tie the game – just what the Astros want to happen in the future. The game continued through the eighth and into the ninth, and Nick Martinez had no chance in the bottom of the frame. After striking out Springer to lead off the inning, Martinez allowed a single to Dexter Fowler, walked Jason Castro, and allowed a walk off single to Matt Dominguez to seal the game up for the Astros.
Pitching Lines of the Night: Masahiro Tanaka threw his first career complete game shutout as a Yankee, allowing four hits while striking out eight and walking none in New York’s 4-0 win over the Mets. Brandon McCarthy was awesome for the Diamondbacks in their 5-1 loss to Washington, giving up one run on two hits in eight innings, striking out seven without a walk. Doug Fister looked like the Fister of old in the Nationals’ win, allowing one run on five hits in seven innings, striking out six and walking none. Jake Odorizzi shut down the Mariners in Tampa Bay’s 2-0 win, allowing one hit over six scoreless innings, walking a pair and striking out seven. Garrett Richards pitched the Angels to a 3-0 win in Philly, giving up five hits over seven shutout frames, striking out eight and walking none. Corey Kluber dominated the Blue Jays in Cleveland’s win in Toronto, allowing two runs on four hits in seven innings while striking out nine and walking one.
Hitting Lines of the Night: David Murphy had himself a night in Toronto, going 5/6 with three doubles, two runs, and five RBI. Lonnie Chisenhall also chipped in by going 5/6 with a double and an RBI. David Ortiz and the Red Sox smashed the Twins 9-4, and Big Papi powered the Boston offense by going 3/4 with a double, two solo homers, and three runs. The Giants beat up the Braves 10-4 thanks to Hunter Pence going 4/5 with a homer, two runs, and three RBI, and Brandon Crawford going 3/5 with a double, a homer, two runs, and three RBI. Gordon Beckham helped the White Sox best the A’s 4-2, going 3/4 with a homer and two runs scored. Marlins catcher Jeff Mathis helped the team thump the Dodgers 13-3, going 2/4 with a double, two runs, three RBI, and a walk.
Other Games: The Tigers edged the Orioles 7-5. The Royals slipped by the Rockies 3-2. Rain hit the midwest and postponed the Padres-Reds and Cubs-Cardinals games. The latter will be made up as part of a doubleheader today.
What You Missed: The Rangers rotation is screwed. Don’t be so sure that Jose Fernandez will be awesome when he returns from Tommy John. Tim looked back at the Marlins-Blue Jays megatrade in light of Anthony DeSclafani’s major league debut on Wednesday night.
Today’s Games: Johnny Cueto and Ian Kennedy will duel in game one of the Reds-Padres doubleheader. Yovani Gallardo and the Brewers host the Pirates. Michael Wacha and the Cardinals host the Cubs. Danny Salazar starts for the Indians in Toronto. Yordano Ventura and the Royals host Wei-Yin Chen and the Orioles. Tyler Skaggs and the Angels host the Rays. Nate Eovaldi gets the nod for the Marlins in San Francisco against Matt Cain and the Giants.
National TV: Yankees-Mets (7 PM, MLB Network), Indians-Blue Jays (7 PM, MLB Network)
MLB.tv Free Game: Indians-Blue Jays (7 PM)
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
