2015 EFL Update #1: Peshastin, Kaline set the pace

Highlights from Opening Day(s) Sunday’s 1 game and Monday’s 14.

Peshastin. W 1, L 0; 0.928    The Pears’ perceptive purchase (via draft-and-trade) of Devon Travis paid off promptly: 1 for 2 with a homer and two walks! Seth Smith added two doubles and a triple in 3 trips to the plate.  Jay Bruce — well, he wasn’t originally found as a gem when no one else was looking, but plenty of people averted their eyes last year — Jay Bruce hit a homer a took a walk in three plate appearances. Max Scherzer allowed no earned runs in 7.7 ip.

 

Kaline:  Wins: 1  Losses: 0  Pct: .778   As everyone predicted in their heart of hearts (although no one was brave enough to say it aloud), the Drive come out of the box looking like EFL champions with the most dominant Opening Day performance. It’s not like we didn’t have our chances to stop the Drive. No one else bid on Kyle Kendrick, who turns out to be not only an Opening Day starter but also the author of seven shutout innings, with six  strikeouts and no walks. Perennial disappointment Travis Snider, in whom only the Wolverines also believed, responded to the Drive’s faith by going 3 for 4.  Only the Drive bid on Norichika Aoki, but he built on that slender reed of grace to go 2 for 4. Brad Miller went 2 for 3. Yoenis Cespedes went 2 for 4 with a double and a triple. Even lowly Jace Peterson, ignored during the Rookie Draft and neglected a second too long by the W’s, came through with 1 for 3 with a walk.

 

Haviland: W 1, L 0, .696    The Dragons got to experience something they maybe didn’t even realize they were missing all winter:  the particular excruciation of watching your new stud Steve Pearce hit a home run and score another run to produce your Opening Day pitcher Chris Archer’s disappointing, mediocre, not so good, pretty bad (5.7 ip, 3 er) day.  Then you see new shortstop Alcides Escobar go 2 for 4 with a double and a walk to set the table for your favorite Kansas City Royals to do a number on your other Opening Day starter, newly acquired Jeff Samardzija (6 ip, 5 er).  Kurt Suzuki drilled a homer to left — except Kaline’s Yoenis Cespedes brought it back. As consolation baseball offered the Dragons a nice 2 for 3 with a walk  from Casey McGehee — newly demoted to a 50% backup role at third base — while the new starting third baseman only got in as a pinch hitter. But proceeded to blast a three-run double. Isn’t it great to have baseball back?

 

Cottage:  Wins: 1  Losses: 0  Pct: .676.  Right off the bat it looks like projecting the Cheese to finish second represents a serious underestimate:  Sonny Gray almost pitched a no hitter, going 8 scoreless innings. Clay Buchholz added 7 more. Ben Zobrist went 2 for 5 with a homer and a double, and on Sunday Jason Heyward went 3 for 5 with 2 doubles.

But under the surface there may still be some weak spots in the Cheese’s crust. Chasen Shreve allowed an earned run in only 1.3 ip.   Phil Hughes surrendered 4 er in 6 ip. Wil Myers , Yasiel Puig, Pablo Sandoval, Wilmer Flores, Yunel Escobar, Jorge Soler, and Arismendy Alcantara the Great combined to go 0 for 13 with a walk.  And, of course, there’s still the Drive out there in front.

 

Portland: W 1, L 0; .520.   Alex Avila went 2 for 3 with a homer. Mookie Betts went 2 for 4 with a homer and a walk. And Yordano Ventura opened the Rosebud season with 6 strong innings (1 er). But Ventura left the game holding his hand after he had a cramp, making Rosebuds everywhere shiver in their beds.

 

Old Detroit: W 0, L 1;  .0375.  21.3 IP, 5 er, 2.11 ERA:  The Wolverines lead the EFL with three Opening Day starters:  Liriano (7.3 ip, 2 er), Kluber (7 ip, 2 er) and newcomer Bumgarner (7 ip, 1 er).  That’s 21.3 ip, 5 er, for a sweet (and ample) Opening Day helping of 2.11 ERA.  Or just enough to keep the W’s in the game while their hitters sort of stank (). One almost forgets what baseball’s steady diet of sweet and sour tastes like.

 

 Canberra:  Wins: 0  Losses: 1  Pct: .145.  The results aren’t quite there yet, but there is good news.    Daniel Hudson is back — pitching a scoreless inning for the Kangaroos. Jose Abreu homered and walked in 4 plate appearances. Bryce Harper went 2 for 4 with a homer.

 

 

Flint Hill: W 0, L 1; .138     Josh Collmenter wasn’t on my mental list of Opening Day starters, but he won the job for the Tornados.  And a tornado is what he produced, wiping out Flint Hill Stadium with his 4.7 ip, 5 er performance. Still, Dustin Pedroia came through, going 3 for 5 with two homers.

 

 

Pittsburgh> W 0, L 1  Pct: .067     Mike Trout still has that Allegheny swagger. He hit a homer in his first at-bat of the season, and stole Peshastin Logan Morrison’s homer in Logan’s last at-bat of the game.  But in between he struck out three times. Michael Brantley started his Allegheny career 0 for 4. Cole Hamels turned in a 5 ip, 4 er stinker. Nick Ahmed took control of the shortstop role, going 0 for 1 with a walk.