Opening In Style
It may have been a less than perfect way to win the opening game, but you gotta love beating your division rival on their turf, which is exactly what the Brewers did today. What started as a dual between staff Aces (Sheets versus Zambrano) ended with the polar opposite of pitching prowess, as both closers struggled mightily (Gagne and Wood). In the end, though, it was a guy that may only be on the active roster due to the suspension of the primary center fielder that brought home the bacon. Tony Gwynn, Jr. had big at bats in both the 9th and 10th innings that carried the Brewers to the 4-3 win.
Things I Liked:
- Ben Sheets pitched amazingly well, even with a significant amount of time between innings due to the rain delay. 6 1/3 innings, 2 hits, 2 walks, 7 strikeouts, and perhaps the best thing: He didn’t get injured!
- Guillermo Mota - it was a short outing, but a good setup man will be very important this year
- That after a relatively poor showing by the offense all day, the meat of the order got it done big time in the 9th inning, and of course, scratched one out in the 10th
Things I Didn’t Like:
- Really, there was one thing I didn’t like, and it was Eric Gagne’s debut outing for the Brewers. Honestly, Eric, for $10 million you should at least be able to blow the save with more style than Derrick Turnbow.
All in all, defeating the Cubs at Wrigley, especially after giving them hope in the 9th inning, made this a beautiful Opening Day. Roll Out The Barrel!
March 31st, 2008 at 9:50 pm
I think you also have to chalk one up for Yost’s line-up gamble, at least in the last two innings. With Fielder batting 3rd and Braun moved to the clean up spot, the Cubs chose to walk Fielder and pitch to Braun instead. Talk about picking your poison.