And folks said that Diamondbacks fans don’t care. Certainly they do, but as Rodney Dangerfield would say, “about what I have no idea.” Apparently not about dehydration. Oh, the water bottles were empty? My bad.
Either way, Arizona lost the game Brandon Webb started, which creates serious problems for the rest of the series. Friday night’s game (first pitch 7 p.m. PT) features slop-balling left-hander Doug Davis and young flamethrower Ubaldo Jimenez. If Jimenez is on his game (anyone’s guess given his lack of experience), he should have little trouble with Arizona’s hitters. Davis, as is his custom, will be perfectly …read more

I said the openers would feature great pitching matchups, but I’m not sure I expected a grand total of 14 runs between the three games. Wow.
Let’s see what in store for Thursday, shall we?

Rockies at Phillies, 12 noon PT — Dropping Game 1 at home with Cole Hamels puts Philadelphia in a very uncomfortable position. Rookie Kyle Kendrick put up a nice ERA and win totals, but his complete inability to throw the ball past hitters could present a serious problem against the Rockies, who tend to hit the ball hard when they make contact. Another rookie, the even younger …read more

Ack, more games! Why wasn’t I informed…
American League

Red Sox at Yankees, 10:05 a.m. PT — This series doesn’t need any more hype. Either you love it or you don’t care. Watch (or don’t) accordingly.
Mariners at Indians, 4:05 p.m. PT — Playoff implications in this one, plus a potentially volatile pitching matchup. Two finesse lefties — the execrable Horacio Ramirez and the too-unknown-to-have-an-unflattering-adjective-attached-to-the-front-of-his-name Aaron Laffey — hook up in this one. Philosophical question for the day: When does batting practice end and game begin?

National League

Mets at Phillies, 10:05 a.m. PT — We’re all anxious to know whether Philadelphia can reach the …read more

I hope y’all had a good weekend. Mine would have been better if the Padres hadn’t been so busy losing a series at home to Houston, but oh well. Here are your games for Monday…
American League

Mariners at Twins, 5:10 p.m. PT — How in the world can Horacio Ramirez have a 7-4 record despite a 7.38 ERA? If his performance doesn’t convince you that won-loss record is a terrible way to evaluate starting pitchers, then nothing will. Opponents are batting .341/.407/.518 against the southpaw; that’s roughly what Joe Mauer did last year. Right-hander Matt Garza (2-3, 2.05 ERA) starts for …read more