Darvish So Close to Perfection

4/2 Games

Texas 3, Houston 0
Yu Darvish came within one out of throwing a perfect game before surrendering a single to Astros no. 9 hitter Marvin Gonzalez as the Rangers prevailed 7-0 in Houston.  Darvish struck out 14 and didn't walk a batter, demonstrating incredible control while Ian Kinsler and Elvis Andrus each drove in two runs to supply the offense in the Rangers win.


Baltimore 7, Tampa Bay 4
Matt Wieters, Adam Jones and Chris Davis combined for 6 hits, 7 RBI, 5 runs and 2 HRs (Wieters & Davis) as the Orioles spoiled the Rays home opener.

Cleveland 4, Toronto 1
Asdrubal Cabrera hit a 2-run HR and Cleveland starter Justin Masterson gave up just 3 hits as the Indians spoiled the debut of R.A. Dickey in Toronto.

Colorado 8, Milwaukee 4
Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonazlez each homered for the second day in a row as the Rockies roughed up Brewers pitching once again.

St. Louis 6, Arizona 1

Matt Holiday, Pete Kozma and  John Jay all homered for the Cardinals in Arizona and the Diamondbacks managed just 3 total hits and only 2 off starter Jaime Garcia.

San Francisco 3, Los Angeles 0

Madison Bumgarner limited the Dodgers to 2 hits through 8 innings and also drove in a run with a fielder's choice to shutout their bitter rival in Los Angeles.

Seattle 7, Oakland 1

Mike Morse hit a pair of HRs and drove in 4 runs and Yoenis Cespedes hit a solo shot as the Mariners beat the Athletics again in Oakland.

Fantasy Spin

Lance Berkman inherited the no. 4 spot in the Texas Rangers lineup that was vacated by slugger Josh Hamilton and could be in for a very productive year.  He went 2-4 in the opener and 3-4 last night with two RBI , and if he stays healthy (and he should now that he's the Rangers full-time DH and won't play the field)  he should get plenty of chances to drive in table setters Ian Kinsler and Elvis Andrus ahead of him.

News & Notes
Yankee 2B Robinson Cano fired agent Scott Boras and hired Roc Nation, an entertainment company headed by rapper & producer Jay-Z who is planning on becoming a certified agent.  Cano is a free agent after this year and presumably is in line for a huge payday.

Darvish would've become just the second Japanese player to throw a no-hitter, the other being Hideo Nomo who pitched 2.

A.L. MVP Watch   LanceBerkman all the way.

N.L. MVP Watch   Still Bryce Harper even on an off day, but he has company with Carlos Gonzalez & Troy Tulowitzki.  All three guys have two HRs each after 2 days, but Harper's two are after just 1 game.

Record Watch -  Yu Darvish is on pace for 420 strikeouts which would break the season record held by who?  See trivia question below.

History – Oakland Athletics

The Athletics are one of the American League's 8 charter franchises, established in Philadelphia in 1901.  Legendary owner/manager Connie Mack owned the team for the first 50 years of existence, winning 3 World Series from 1910-1913 and two in a row from 1929-1930.  After more than 20 years on the decline, the team moved to Kansas City in 1955 with little success and later moved to Oakland in 1968.  In a few short years a rare dynasty emerged and they won 3 consecutive World Series from 1972-1974.  !5 years later in 1989 they won their last World Series over the San Francisco Giants, known more for the earthquake that interrupted the series than the sweep by the powerful A's.

Trivia - Today’s Question - In the modern era (after 1900) who holds the the record for most strikeouts in a season?

Yesterday’s Question:  Rickey Henderson led the American League in stolen bases 9 times during the 1980s.  Who led the league the year Rickey didn't?

Answer – Harold Reynolds, who stole 60 bases for the Seattle Mariners in 1987

Wednesday 4/3 Schedule My picks to win are highlighted. 
Yesterday's Picks:  1-6  Overall 9-10

Time (EST)                                                                                                                                    

2:10 pm    Kansas City Royals (Santana) @ Chicago White Sox (Peavy)                            

2:10 pm    Texas Rangers (Ogando) @ Houston Astros (Humber)                   

4:10 pm    Detroit Tigers (Sanchez) @ Minnesota Twins (Correia)            

7:05 pm    Miami Marlins (Slowey) @ Washington Nationals (Gonzalez) 

7:05 pm    Chicago Cubs (Jackson) @ Pittsburgh Pirates (Rodriguez)                  

7:05 pm    Boston Red Sox (Bucholz) @ New York Yankees (Kuroda)                       

7:07 pm    Cleveland Indians (Jiminez) @ Toronto Blue Jays (Morrow)            

7:10 pm    San Diego Padres (Richard) @ New York Mets (Harvey)

7:10 pm    Philadelphia Phillies (Halladay) @ Atlanta Braves (Maholm)

7:10 pm    Baltimore Orioles (Chen) @ Tampa Bay Rays (Hellickson)

7:10 pm    Los Angeles Angels (Wilson) @ Cincinnati Reds (Latos)

8:10 pm    Colorado Rockies (Nicasio) @ Milwaukee Brewers (Peralta)

9:40 pm    St. Louis Cardinals (Lynn) @ Arizona Diamondbacks (McCarthy)

10:05 pm  Seattle Mariners (Saunders) @ Oakland Athletics (Millone)

10:10 pm  San Francisco Giants (Lincecum) @ Los Angeles Dodgers (Beckett)

  

Finally, an actual Las Vegas proposition bet for today:  Over/Under:  5  Innings pitched by San Francisco starter Tim Lincecum against the Dodgers.

Yesterday’s Prop Bet: Over/Under: 7 Strikeouts by Yu Darvish

 Result - Vegas was way low.  He struck out 14.