Caught between a rock and a hard place, Masahiro Tanaka stated that he was going to change his approach due to a slight reduction in his velocity, probably with his looming elbow issue in mind. Uh oh.
Guess who was (reluctantly) #1 on my Busts list for pitchers because problems with elbows spell trouble?
Guess who was (as good as) forced to do a few shots of tequila as our 14-team “home draft” got underway? Okay, maybe not forced, but encouraged.
Guess who slipped to the 7th Round in our draft because everyone seemed to pay attention to my claim that he was “high risk”?
Guess who got reckless and didn’t pay attention to his own advice?
Do you get the gist here? I own Tanaka.
Fellow Tanaka owners, I’m a little unhappy with you for not listening to me. So, this is a curious case where misery doesn’t like company. However, if he gets through all this and comes out smelling like a rose, I will commend your risk-taking venture. As well, I’ll be very careful not to brag if he does, speaking of being caught between a rock and a hard place. It’s the life of my story.
ARMS
Masahiro Tanaka - (4 IP/5 H/5 R/4 ER/2 BB/6 K) Things went south in the 3rd. The Jays took advantage of a hit, a walk and an error to touch up Tanaka for 5 runs. He looked sharp early, but mistakes against the offensive-powerhouse Blue Jays this year will not go unpunished.
Drew Hutchison - (6 IP/3 H/ 1 R/2 BB/3 K) Bold statement in the Bronx from the 24 yr. old. Got early run support and ran with it for the W.
David Price - (8.2 IP/5 H/o R/o ER/0 BB/5 K) Masterful performance by the Workhorse who hasn’t skipped a beat from last year’s dominance.
Joe Nathan – Not even he could blow this oppotunity. Easy save, as he just needed the one out. The writing is on the wall for Nathan, but unfortunately his tenure is prolonged for now. Meanwhile, Soria waits in the wings.
Phil Hughes - (6 IP/8 H/4 R/4 ER/ 1 BB/6 K) More like the old Hughes from his days in the Bronx. The Tigers are as tough as anyone with the bats.
Kyle Lohse - (3.1 IP/10 H/8 R/8 ER/0 BB/1 K) The battle of the Kyles (Kendrick for the Rockies) turned out to be a gongshow, as the Rockies put their awesome offensive prowess on display. Might be the first and last time we include Lohse in the rundown. He’s Fantasy-irrelevant. Can’t picture Kendrick ever making it here.
Clay Buchholz - (7 IP/3 H/ 0 R/0 ER/1BB/9 K) 38% owned in Yahoo Leagues. A lot of us wasted this opportunity. Buchholz does not have much durability, but when he’s on, he’s on. Keep in mind, this was the downtrodden Phillies – temper your excitement. He should be owned in most leagues with all that potential run support.
Cole Hamels - (5 IP/5 H/4 R/4 ER/3 BB/6 K) Man, this kind of makes me feel a little better about Tanaka – unless he’s pitching against the fearsome Red Sox. You remember those 5 hr Yankee-Red Sox battles? They’re baa aack.
Chris Tillman - (6.2 IP/4 H/1 R/1 ER/3 BB/4 K) Impressive start against a not so impressive lineup – certainly the worst in the A.L. East.
Chris Archer - (5.2 IP/6 H/4 R/3 ER/1 BB/5 K) Not great, but at least he had the control issue figured out
Bartolo Colon - (6 IP/3 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/8 K) Defies everything. Turns 42 in May. Matched his very wealthy opponent pitch for pitch.
Max Scherzer - (7.2 IP/4 H/3 R/0 ER/ 2 BB/8 K) Great outing. Poor support.
Jeff Samardzija - (6 IP/6 H/5 R/5 ER/3 BB/1 K) Welcome to the new and improved A.L. Central. The Royals got a taste. Now they’re hungry.
Yordano Ventura - (6 IP/4 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/2 K) Quality outing from the sophomore.
Francisco Liriano - (7 IP/2 H/2 R/2 ER/3 BB/7 K) Was slightly out-dueled by Cueto. Didn’t deserve the loss. Didn’t get it.
Johnny Cueto - (7 IP/4 H/0 R/0ER/1 BB/10 K) Picked up just where he left off. Again, it’s remarkable how good he was in the middle of such a forgettable 2014 for the Reds.
Aroldis Chapman – First of many saves, with 2 K. Again, I don’t understand. he’s the least likely pitcher in all of baseball to get hit by a hit, because he allows so few.
Felix Hernandez - (7 IP/2 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/10 K) Dominant performance against a tough crowd. Will the King get his Crown this year?
Fernando Rodney – First of many saves for he of the Sideways Cap.
James Shields - (6 IP/6 H/2 R/2 ER/2 BB/8 K) I guess Bud Black doesn’t know that he has a workhorse in Shields. He left with the lead.
Clayton Kershaw - (6 IP/6 H/3 R/3 ER/2 BB/9 K) Wasn’t at his best, but his old teammate was a big factor. All 3 runs Kershaw allowed were driven in by Kemp. Has Superman discovered his kryptonite? (FYI, it was discovered right here on Caveball that both Cy Young Award winners last year shared the same initials as Clark Kent. Coincidence or Conspiracy?)
Corey Kluber - (7.1 IP/3 H/2 R/2 ER/2BB/7 K) And here he is doing what Superman does best – pitching two games in one day. Unfortunately he was slightly overmatched by a guy that looks like one of the villains in the Superman sequel.
Dallas Keuchel - (7 IP/3 H/0 R/0 ER/3 BB/4 K) “The Villain” must have left a small chunk of kryptonite in the rosin bag – just enough to throw C.K. off his game.
Luke Gregerson – Pitched a perfect 9th, which probably means it’s his inning to lose.
Julio Teheran - (6 IP/8 H/1 R/1ER/4 K) Could be a similar situation to Tyson Ross last year for Teheran – Lots of one-run games. he did manage to notch the win. Stood his ground against an improved Marlins lineup.
Henderson Alvarez - (7 IP/6 H/2 R/2 ER/2 K) Quality start from the man with two surnames.
Jason Grilli - Notched his first save for the Braves last night. Hope you were the one to grab him after the Kimbrel trade.
Sonny Gray - (8 IP/1 H/0 R/0 ER/1 BB/ 3 K) The pitching performance of the night. He still might be wondering if he’s pitching for the right team. Since Coco Crisp is injured he may not recognize anyone else.
Madison Bumgarner - (7 IP/6 H/1 R/1 ER/1 BB/3 K) Got the W despite poor support from the bullpen.
Bats
J. D. Martinez – 1/4 with a solo opposite field homer. Our bold predictions in Mining and Pining for the Home Run have this late bloomer finishing with 32. 1 down.
Ian Kinsler – 2/4 as he continued with his hot Spring hitting.
Alex Avila – 2/3 with a 2-run HR. The often injured catcher might still be on your waiver wire, but I’d probably leave him right there.
Yoenis Cespedes – 2/4 with 2 R
Russell Martin – 1/4 with 1 R and 2 RBI, as the Canadian played his first game for Toronto.
Edwin Encarnacion – 1/4 with a 2-run HR. He’s another pick from us in the Mining and Pining for the Home Run. We have Encarnacion finishing with 40 this year. This will mostly depend on his health. 1 down and 39 to go.
Carlos Gonzalez – 2/4 with a 2B, 2 R and an RBI. Sweet-swinging Rockie looks good… for now.
Troy Tulowitzki – 3/5 with 2 2B, 3 R and an RBI. Hard-hitting Rockie looks good… for now.
Nolan Arenado – 3/4 with a BB, a 2B, a HR and 4 RBI. It’s hard to believe this took place in Milwaukee.
Corey Dickerson – 2/5 with a 2B, a HR and 4 RBI. I ask you: How good is this Rockie lineup if this guy’s hitting from the 6-spot? He had an RBI/Inning through 4. That’s a new stat we might have to consider adding for this team if Cargo and Tulo stay healthy. Speaking of Mining and Pining for the Home Run, we have Dickerson finishing just ahead of J.D. Martinez with 33 HRs this year.
Dustin Pedroia – 3/5 with 2 HR The gamer is already making good on his I.O.U. promises. We listened to him: Comebacks
Mookie Betts – 2/4 with a BB, 2 R, 1 RBI and 1 HR He was the guy to reach for a couple of rounds early. A member of our Breakouts club.
Hanley Ramirez – 2/5 with 5 RBI and 2 HR Looks like a beast early on. Still think he’ll miss a lot of games.
Alejandro De Aza – 1/5 with 2 R, 2 RBI and a HR From the leadoff spot, no less
Evan Longoria – 1/4 with a HR
Travis d’Arnaud – 2/4 with a 3B and an RBI One of our Sleeper picks.
Bryce Harper – 2/4 with a HR No support.
Jose Abreu - 1/3 with a BB and a HR The only bright spot in a forgettable day for the team that had the best offseason.
Mike Moustakas – 2/3 with a BB, 2 R, 1 RBI and a HR. Is this finally the breakout year. Walk, don’t run, to the waiver wire.
Billy Hamilton – 1/4 with 2 R and a steal
Joey Votto – 2/4 with a R From the 2-spot (?) Hmm, interesting – better than having Phillips hitting there. (Comeback)
Todd Frazier – 1/4 with a 3-run HR. Plenty of doubters he can repeat the numbers from last year. I’m not one of them.
Jay Bruce – Yet another pick for an increased HR total in 2015. Think we have him pegged for 30, an increase of 12 from last year. (Comeback Bat)
Josh Harrison – 2/4 with a 2B and a R He will finally shake that “Utility Man” stigma this year.
Andrew McCutchen – 2/4 with a R, 2 RBI and a HR. Guy’s a machine.
Mike Trout – 1/4 with a solo shot. The only extra base hit for the Angels
Nelson Cruz – 0/4 Our top bust this year.
Matt Kemp – 2/4 with 3 RBI against the best pitcher in baseball. Don’t forget, no one was better than Kemp in the second half last year.
Jimmy Rollins – 2/4 with a steal and a 3-run shot to win the game. I’m all over Rollins this year. He’s got the talent and the reason to prove himself once again.
Howie Kendrick - 2/4 with a 2B, a 3B and a R. The other veteran newcomer makes his own contribution. Unlike Greinke, I really liked what the Dodgers GM did with the team in the offseason. They just have more balance than last year. Kendrick is an upgrade from Dee Gordon.
Adrian Gonzalez – 3/5 with 2 R and 1 RBI Same old boring production.
Jose Altuve – 1/4 with a R and a SB. Had him on many teams last year and will miss him. In the last 14 years, only Ichiro has had as many hits in a season as he had last year.
George Springer – 1/3 with an RBI. An RBI (Altuve) that will be repeated many times this year.
Prince Fielder – 0/4
Ben Zobrist – 2/5 with 2 RBI and a HR. Billy Beane has confounded us before, but I just don’t see this offense going anywhere.
Stephen Vogt – 2/4 with 2 R, 3 RBI and a HR. Then again, you have a Vogt against my theory right here.
Angel Pagan – 3/4 with 2 doubles, a BB, a R and 2 RBI. A nice comeback statement after an injury-plagued 2014
I must commend MLB for the best format for Opening Day (and Night) that I have yet to experience. They christened the season with the age-old rivalry on Sunday Night Baseball. And then on Opening Day they had games scheduled throughout the day – not a dry minute for 12 straight hours. Well done.