Matsui vs. Simon

By Jason Wojciechowski on April 8, 2004 at 5:24 PM

From around the box scores last night:

  • Hideki Matsui got the only Yankee walks last night, but he grabbed three of them. That's more than Randall Simon will get all year.

  • Due to the quirks of the schedule and decent pitching against a terrible team, Kevin Brown already has two wins to go with his 1.29 ERA. Wait and see what happens when he has to pitch to a lineup with nine actual major leaguers before we start declaring him fit to finish the season in strong form, though.

  • Seven runs in the second inning for the Red Sox against Kurt Ainsworth of the Orioles. Baltimore needs Ainsworth to live up to his hype if they're going to challenge the Blue Jays for third place.

  • David Ortiz had three walks and a three-run homer, continuing right where he left off last year, in the face of those who said he could never continue his torrid offensive pace.

  • Detroit sweeps the Blue Jays in Toronto! This time, they won with pitching. Jeremy Bonderman gave up three runs on a Carlos Delgado homer in the first, but settled down, finishing with eight strikeouts in 5 1/3, and the bullpen allowed one hit and no walks from there on. Jeremy Bonderman's going to lead this team to the playoffs! (In 2007)

  • Slugfest in Atlanta, where the Mets scored 10, but the Braves outscored them in the fourth inning alone, getting eleven of their eventual eighteen. Kaz Matsui had his first taste of being called out in the majors, but walked twice more. Mike Piazza decided he didn't like umpires telling him to sit down, so he went 5-5 with two homers, giving him three for the season.

  • Julio Franco pinch-hit for Mike Hampton in the fourth and got two at-bats for his trouble, as the Braves sent fifteen men to the plate.

  • Everyone's talking about Roger Clemens, so I might as well, too. Nine strikeouts, no runs, and a .500 batting average make his National League debut a resounding success. You can't expect this every time out (especially the striking out Barry Bonds part), but he should be a pretty good third starter this year, in case you hadn't figured that out.

  • Beaneball favorite Craig Wilson hit his second homer in a losing effort for the Pirates. He's on a fantasy team of mine, so hopefully strong performance will equate itself with many at-bats. He's just been waiting for an opportunity.

  • Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr. homered for the Reds, leading them to a victory over the punchless Cubs, who could only manage a ninth-inning solo home run by Derrek Lee. Lee instantly becomes my fantasy enemy, since Danny Graves is being counted on to provide not only saves, but a sub-9.00 ERA.

  • Matt LeCroy becomes the latest Twin to go down to injury, straining a muscle swinging the bat and being forced to the DL. So much for making sure he got the lion's share of Joe Mauer's at bats.

  • Charles Johnson had two doubles, a homer, and a walk, but it wasn't enough, as his battery mate, Jason Jennings, gave up seven runs in just 3 2/3 innings. Brandon Webb pitched well (seven strikeouts, one run, six innings) for Arizona.

  • Anaheim is famous for not striking out, and while they did whiff eleven times last night, everyone in the lineup also got a hit, led by Garret Anderson's two home runs, on their way to a 10-7 win over Seattle. Jarrod Washburn's poor pitching against a pretty weak Seattle offense has to concern the Angels.

  • Finally, LA won a Dodger Special, 2-1, in the 11th inning. Jeff Weaver pitched more like Jered Weaver, giving up just one run in seven innings, and the bullpen, with Jose Lima (yes, that one) pitching last, held on just long enough for the Dodgers to eek out one more run.