April 05, 2006
Games of the Day
There are a number of pitchers making their team debuts today.
Bronson Arroyo starts life over in Cincinnati. He goes from maybe starting for the Red Sox to the number two pitcher for the Reds. Bronson strikes fell below 4.5 per 9, the magic number for successful pitching. Getting that back to his career levels, especially with the Reds defense, will be the key to his success with the new team. He faces the Cubs and Glendon Rusch.
In Seattle, new Angel Jeff Weaver faces former Angel Jarrod Washburn. Jarrod parlayed his second best ERA into a big contract with Seattle. Opponents put the ball in play against Washburn, and that plays to the strength of the Angels.
Joe Mays makes his Kansas city debut against the Detroit Tigers and Jeremy Bonderman. Mays showed great promise in 2001, but injuries and a lack of strikeouts meant an ERA over 5.00 ever since.
Josh Beckett makes his Red Sox premier in his home state of Texas versus the Rangers. Beckett always posts great ERAs, but last year was the first season he came close to making every start. He'll face Kameron Loe, who keeps the ball in the park and pitched well for the Rangers last season.
Orlando Hernandez takes the mound for Arizona tonight, facing the Rockies in Colorado. The Diamondbacks hope the post-season Orland shows up, not the one that gave up 18 home runs in 128 1/3 innings during the regular season.
They'll try to play again in San Diego. Matt Morris makes his Giants debut against a former Giant, Shawn Estes. Over the previous four seasons, Estes holds the fifth highest ERA among pitchers with 400 innings, highest if you go to 600. Pitching at sea level this year should help that.
Enjoy!
Posted by David Pinto at
08:39 AM
|
Matchups
|
TrackBack (0)