Result of the series - 2-1 victory -- absolutely wonderful, and doubly so, since it was against a division rival, and the one many pundits were predicting as the sleeper pick to win the division, (y'know like Seattle was last February).
Thoughts per game - then the summary:
Game 1) Felix is indeed the King. One small blip early, then a complete shut down of the opposition. 5/0 K/BB ratio is a nice start. CG a minor surprise for opening day, but despite the 5 hits, he only faced 30 batters and threw only 108 pitches.
Offense managed 6 runs off 8 hits and 7 (?!?) walks! By stats, Cahill was effectively wild, and the rest of the game, the As were just wild. But, lost in the sweet goodness of an opening day CG from Felix was fourteen (14) Ks by the Ms hitters. Yeah, it was TTO central - but in what reality is a HR from Figgins a "true" outcome? Really.
The most subtle aspect of the game was that Wedge managed to avoid having to touch his bullpen at all on day one.
Oddball observation: I'm mostly alone, but was glad to see Langerhans get the start over Saunders. He had a better overall Spring - and I believe entitled prospects are JUST as dangerous to the club as entitled veterans. The 4 whiffs is also helpful in not keeping Saunders out of the lineup too long.
Game 2) Vargas didn't throw a CG. But he did throw a QS, and fanned more As than Felix, while walking only one. Unlike Felix he didn't get run support, (though the club upped its hit total significantly). The 14/7 K/BB turned to 5/2 for the Ms offense. This time Smoak was the only guy to earn a stroll.
Well, after Figgy was the first M to HR in game one - Ryan was the only guy with an XBH in game two. But, he did manage to give that base back with a CS.
Chris Ray managed to blow a save for the team in the first game where the bullpen appeared. He also managed to poach the "W", as League got the save. A 0/0 K/BB for the bullpen doesn't say much of anything - but it's only 2.1 innings.
Adam Moore picked up right where he left off in 2010 - oh-fer-three with two Ks. But Saunders managed a couple of sacrifices and got an RBI in his first start.
Oddball observation: Saunders and Moore were the only Ms w/o a base hit. They were the only Ms who have never played for another team.
Game 3) This time the offense had a 7/5 K/BB ratio. And a *REAL* slugger got the 2nd HR of the year for the club - Langerhans ... (oh, never mind). The club sprinkled in 6 hits among the walks, but managed only a single run (on that HR). Small ball was a wee too small on this day.
Doc says he'd love to see Fister pitch like this all the time. I have no reason to doubt Doc's eyes-on assessment. But, the NUMBERS show 8 hits in 5.2 innings. My concern with Fister from day one is hits allowed. At every level of the minors, he got HIT. His saving grace is an ability to avoid the gopher, which he did just fine. (In fact after 3 games, the only HR allowed was by Felix). But, if Fister is going to allow 8 hits in 5.2 innings "when he's dialed in", that causes me concern for those days when he isn't. In the end, I remain convinced that Fister is Silva-lite, meaning, he will likely ALWAYS be hanging onto his job by the skin of his teeth - and he could turn into a 6+ ERA pitcher at the drop of a hat. With his control, (plus-plus), he's probably in just about the only AL situation where he could survive long term. But, I still think his best hope for a nice career would include a trade to the NL, (like St. Louis).
Of note on Fister - he faced 26 batters and threw 98 pitches. ZERO were swinging strikes. Is it REALLY possible to be dialed in and NEVER miss a bat? Ever? There were 22 strikes looking against him.
Fister finished one out short of a QS. So, not a 'tough loss' - at least officially.
The bullpen (Lueke) ended any drama pretty quickly, though he did manage to get the first K for the bullpen this season.
Oddball observation: Fister didn't walk any - but he gave up 3 doubles and a triple. His LD% wasn't bad, though. But, the puzzler here is ... why is it that the pitcher with the best control on the team is the first guy to plunk an opposing batter. No walks - but an HBP is a free pass, nonetheless.
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Conclusion: Rotation is going to be solid. Offense will be better, but still pretty bad. But, little reason thus far to believe the bullpen is at least as bad - (and probably worse) than 2010. Hope I'm wrong - and maybe Aardsma and Kelley and Cortes and maybe even Moran eventually get it all together and make me eat crow in the 2nd half. Of course, if that happens, what does that say about the current pen?
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