All disclaimers aside about not wanting to injure another player, not wanting to put the leadoff batter on, and not wanting to screw up pitch control ... if I'm Rich Harden, my first pitch today is at Maicer Izturis's head.
Seriously, though -- one big way for the A's to work toward not getting swept today would be to not give up another frakkin leadoff HR to the Angels' muppet of a leadoff man.
'Course, with Ervin "CyYoungWalterJohnsonChristyMathewson" Santana pitching for Angels, Harden could give up -1 runs today and the A's might still be outscored.
Garret Anderson is the only Angels with any significant body of experience against Harden -- unlikely as it seems given Anderson's M.O., he's been a patient on-base machine against Harden. And while Harden has pretty much PWN3D Vlad, it's only a matter of time before Vlad rips off a 3-HR game against any pitcher.
The A's trot out pretty much the same lineup they've been employing post-Ziegler Day, with Buck bumped up a spot in the order. Here's hoping Patrol Craft leaves Johnny Mize in the dust, and the A's lefty-heavy lineup can come through against Santana (frankly, though, I'm not holding my breath on the latter, as almost all of Santana's career platoon split has been generated by ... an increase in his walk rate vs. LH batters).
