Where the Wild Things Are

Be honest. Did you expect Bartolo Colon to come out of the gate so strong this season? Granted, the Mariners and Devil Rays aren’t exactly world beaters, but 11 strikeouts is impressive against any opponent. And how about Philip Hughes getting upstaged by A.J. Burnett and the Blue Jays? Don’t look now, but the Yankees are 8-12. Too early for anyone to panic, of course, but I imagine a few people are at least smoldering a little.

Anyway, it’s Friday; here’s the best of what’s on the schedule:

American League

• Red Sox at Yankees, 4:05 p.m. PT – Daisuke Matsuzaka faces Andy Pettitte. Don’t let the 4.00 ERA fool you, Matsuzaka has been pitching well. Sure, he coughed up some runs against the Yankees his last time out, but everyone does that against the Yankees. Matsuzaka (can’t bring myself to call him “Dice-K”; reminds me too much of Andrew “Dice” Clay) has some pretty killer peripherals — gotta like 31 strikeouts against six walks. I know it’s early, but still. As for Pettitte, he’s the only member of the Yankees rotation that hasn’t sucked.
• Twins at Tigers, 4:05 p.m. PT – I still expect Ramon Ortiz to turn into a pumpkin at any moment, but it hasn’t happened yet, so I have to give at least a little love to a matchup that features two guys with ERAs hovering around 2.00. Ortiz isn’t striking anyone out (3.72 K/9), but he also isn’t giving up many hits and he’s doing a surprisingly good job of keeping the ball in the park. Still, he hasn’t been effective for any length of time since 2002, so I remain skeptical. Nate Robertson goes for Detroit. He is off to a fine start. Also, he has the best combination of eyewear and facial hair ever. I wonder if he likes Battlestar Galactica?

National League

• Reds at Pirates, 4:05 p.m. PT – Pittsburgh is playing some good ball early in the season, and I actually think they have a chance to keep it going. The matchup here is Eric Milton and Ian Snell. Never mind Milton, the reason to watch this is Snell, who quietly is developing into one of the National League’s better right-handers. He’s not there just yet, but he is making good progress and remains a serious breakout candidate for ‘07.
• Mets at Nationals, 4:05 p.m. PT – If you want to see a total pitching meltdown, this is probably your best bet. Oliver Perez has gained notoriety over the past couple seasons for his inability to throw strikes (4.90 BB/9 for his career), and Matt Chico is well on his way. I’m sure you’ve seen his wild pitch that sailed over the first-base dugout and into the stands. Not just anyone can do that, you know.
• Brewers at Astros, 5:05 p.m. PT – Chris Capuano goes up against Roy Oswalt. Aside from the great pitching matchup, have you noticed how well the Brewers are playing? They were the sexy NL Central pick coming into the season, and I resisted jumping on the bandwagon because I had concerns about their youth. I still have those concerns, but if they keep this up, it’s going to be extremely difficult for me to maintain that stance with anything close to a straight face.

There you have it. Grab a friend or two, and get out to the ballpark if you can. Happy Friday!