Daily Notes: Indians in Milwaukee for "home" opener
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Jeff Weaver, RHP (0-0) versus Josh Beckett, RHP (1-0)
Notable Injuries: None
Game Story: Coming off the snowed-out series in Cleveland, the Mariners will reset their rotation by pitching Jeff Weaver Tuesday and Felix Hernandez on Wednesday. Weaver will make his season debut against a Red Sox team stacked with players who historically have batted him around. You'd start all your Red Sox anyway, but in particular, play Jason Varitek, Mike Lowell and, if you hear he's starting, Eric Hinske. Beckett is one of the few pitchers who can tame Ichiro (2-for-11 against Beckett), and hence shut down the Seattle offense. Richie Sexson is the lone Mariner that has had success against Beckett, but that likely won't be enough.
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Nate Robertson LHP (1-0) versus Jaret Wright, RHP (0-1)
Notable Injuries: Ramon Hernandez, C (ribs, DL)
Game Story: Robertson has had success against the Orioles' hitters, and in particular the lefty owns Melvin Mora (1-for-17 against Robertson) and has done well against Corey Patterson and Nick Markakis. However, Kevin Millar should see a start as he has an average over .300 against Robertson. While the jury is still out on Wright, at least 10 of the 12 have written "awful year" on their slips of paper after his last start. Detroit's hitters have a good history against him, and, in particular, Magglio Ordonez has an OPS of 1.111 in 18 at-bats.
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Ervin Santana, RHP (1-0) versus Jake Westbrook, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: Shea Hillenbrand, 1B/DH (groin, DTD); Victor Martinez, C (quadriceps, DTD)
Game Story: The Indians have resorting to changing time zones in order to play a game, finally, at "home." Whatever the location, it's a road game for Ervin Santana, whose away ERA the last three years is more than double his ratio at home (3.06 at home versus 6.46 away). Play all of your Indians, especially David Dellucci (1.167 OPS in 12 at-bats). Westbrook hasn't seemed dominating so far, so feel free to start your regular warm-weather-loving Angels, who will enjoy the irony of playing this one in Wisconsin rather than on the frozen tundra of Jacobs Field.
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Zack Greinke, RHP (0-1) versus Josh Towers, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: Troy Glaus, 3B (heel, DTD)
Game Story: Okay Mr. Greinke, you showed us you could pitch well at home against the Red Sox, but can you do it on the road with the Blue Jays? His past numbers say he likely can, but remember he has to rely on his defense, and the Royals are not a good road team. Start big-name Blue Jays but not fringe ones. The data is limited for Towers pitching against Kansas City's hitters, but it doesn't appear that he has mastery of anyone. On the plus side, he is yet to give up a home run to them. Play your Royals.
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Jae Seo, RHP (0-0) versus Jamey Wright, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: None
Game Story: Seo has not pitched at Rangers Ballpark before and gets eaten up by righties. That likely means Texas has its way with him, but avoid Frank Catalanotto, who has managed only one single in seven at-bats against Seo. The Devil Rays haven't seen much of Wright, but we all know that having him pitch in that ballpark is a terrible idea and should result in a serious offensive explosion. Taking both pitchers together, a lesser man would say conditions were Seo-Wright for you to start your Rangers and Devil Rays. Luckily, I'm not a lesser man.
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Andy Pettitte, LHP (0-0) versus Boof Bonser, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: Hideki Matsui, OF (hamstring, DL); Jeff Cirillo, 3B/DH (knee, DTD)
Game Story: Even though Pettitte threw an inning of relief on Sunday, he is still on track to start Tuesday. The Twins have limited success against Pettitte, except for Jeff Cirillo, who owns him but, unfortunately, has been out with a knee issue. The Yankees have not seen Bonser before, so it comes down to the venue. Bonser is a better play at home and should be started. You would start all your Yankees anyway, so just enjoy the game.
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Jon Garland, RHP (0-0) versus Chad Gaudin, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: None
Game Story: The A's hitters are either feast or famine against Garland, so Shannon Stewart, Bobby Kielty and Mark Ellis should stay on your bench. Nick Swisher also has trouble with Garland, but the Daily Notes would start him even if both of his arms were broken. If Bobby Crosby is healthy he should do well, and Marco Scutaro should finally have a good game. Gaudin is an unknown quantity to the White Sox. With the game being on the road, play your big name Sox and sit your little ones. Gaudin actually would make a good spot starter.
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Chris Sampson, RHP (0-0) versus Jason Marquis, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: None
Game Story: Sampson pitched well enough last year and this spring to earn the fifth spot in the Astros rotation. The problem is, so did Fernando Nieve. We'll see how that shakes out later, but on Tuesday Sampson is pitching in the wet and cold in Wrigley. As we all know, it comes down to which way the wind is blowing to determine how the offenses will fare. Start your Cubbies assuming the elements make it tough for the indoor-playing Astros fielders. For the Astros, since they face Marquis, start everyone not named Adam Everett or Mike Lamb (which means starting Morgan Ensberg).
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Randy Keisler, LHP (0-0) versus Tom Gorzelanny, LHP (1-0)
Notable Injuries: Chris Carpenter, SP (elbow, DL)
Game Story: Bad news for Carpenter owners: He's not starting and has been placed on the DL. Consider this another chapter in the book, "Why You Shouldn't Draft a Pitcher in the First Round." The Pirates were good against lefthanders last year, and Keisler's 1.60 WHIP last year was a career low. Start all your Pirates. The Cardinals haven't seen Gorzelanny, but he's been a terrible pitcher in night games (5.59 ERA at night versus 2.14 ERA during the day). This probably shapes up to be a high-scoring night, but keep in mind Gorzelanny is tough on lefties.
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Claudio Vargas, RHP (0-0) versus Rick Vanden Hurk, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: Hanley Ramirez, SS (hamstring, DTD); Josh Willingham, OF (back, DTD); Miguel Olivo, C (thumb, DTD); Ricky Nolasco, RHP (elbow, DL)
Game Story: Ricky Nolasco was scheduled to start but instead heads to the DL with an elbow injury. We really don't know much about Hurk other than he's 22, and in eight Single-A starts in the Gulf Coast and Florida State leagues, he struck out 41 batters … and walked 14. It appears Florida's trying to catch lightning in a bottle, but go ahead and start all your Brewers to see if they can figure out the rookie. Vargas would be Greg Maddux if he could just keep the ball in the park. He can't, and he isn't. The mid-level Marlin to key on in this game is Mike Jacobs, who is 4-for-9 against Vargas, with two homers.
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Matt Chico, LHP (0-0) versus Tim Hudson, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: none
Game Story: Anyone else want Chad Cordero to be called "The Man," so when Tuesday's Nationals' starter gets a win, they can say the other team was shut down by "Chico and the Man?" Okay, that's just me. I'll move on. The Braves are middle-of-the-pack in terms of hitting lefties, so there doesn't seem to be an advantage for Chico. Start all your Braves, especially those with power. Hudson was great against the Phillies, but four walks are an early warning sign that he's not back to his 2003 form. He should shut down the Nationals' hitters, except Austin Kearns.
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Kyle Lohse, RHP (0-0) versus Edgar Gonzalez, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: Chris Young, OF (groin, DTD)
Game Story: The answer is: real estate over the phone, seafood from the back of a truck, and Kyle Lohse. The question is: What are three things I'm not buying. His 1.74 WHIP doesn't quite match his 2.84 ERA. Start every Diamondback including current color analyst Mark Grace. Of course, what I said about Lohse also could be applied to Gonzalez, who is sporting an even higher WHIP than Lohse. Start all of your Reds, and expect this one to last four hours. This will not be a night for the pitchers.
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Matt Morris, RHP (1-0) versus Clay Hensley, RHP (0-1)
Notable Injuries: none
Game Story: Morris was great in his opener against the Padres last week, but the advantage now swings to the batters in their own park. Also, Morris owners from last year know he's not the same as he was pre-injury, and this season likely will be up and down. Start Brian Giles (but not his brother) who has a .395 BA and four home runs in 43 at-bats. Also use Mike Cameron, and hope Russell Branyan gets the start over Kevin Kouzmanoff. Hensley pitched better against the Giants than the results indicate, but start all your Giants except for Pedro Feliz.
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Rodrigo Lopez, RHP (1-0) versus Brett Tomko, RHP (0-0)
Notable Injuries: none
Game Story: If you were not surprised by Lopez's start in Coors Field last week, raise your hand. I'm still typing, so you know my hand isn't up. AL pitchers entering the NL have a nice honeymoon period as batters adjust. However, I can't imagine Lopez's honeymoon lasting much longer than one game. Start your Dodgers, especially Nomar Garciaparra. On the other side, someone explain to me why Tomko is in the rotation and Chad Billingsley is in the pen (and not the other way around)? Even on the road in Dodger Stadium, start all your Rockies, especially Kazuo Matsui.
Kevin Youkilis, 3B, BOS versus Seattle Mariners
Magglio Ordonez, OF, DET @ Baltimore Orioles
Bobby Crosby, SS, OAK versus Chicago White Sox
Marco Scutaro, 2B, OAK versus Chicago White Sox
Chad Gaudin, SP, OAK versus Chicago White Sox
Morgan Ensberg, 3B, HOU @ Chicago Cubs
Mike Jacobs, 1B, FLA versus Milwaukee Brewers
Austin Kearns, OF, WAS @ Atlanta Braves
Brian Giles, OF, SD versus San Francisco Giants
Please note that the Notable Injuries are not meant to be a comprehensive report of each team's Disabled List. For brevity, we include only day-to-day injuries or new DL additions for players you might otherwise consider using in these games. Long-term DL or day-to-day injuries to starting pitchers who were not scheduled to appear are omitted.
David Young is a fantasy baseball analyst for ESPN.com and TalentedMrRoto.com. He can be reached at MrSnappy@TalentedMrRoto.com
