Well, unless you severely dislike C.J. Wilson, the first game of the playoffs didn't live up to expectations. Wait...what's that? You do severely dislike C.J. Wilson? Well, then, the first game was right up your alley. There will be full recaps of both games posted after the games tonight, but suffice to say, the Rays left C.J. six feet under this afternoon, tagging him for eight runs (six earned) in five innings. The Rangers would not come back from the deficit, and the Rays lead the series 1-0. How do you like the mound, fans, and weather in Texas NOW, C.J.? Bet Oakland's not looking so bad.
Update:
In case you missed it, there was a truly touching moment at the park tonight, as the son of the Rangers' fans who was killed earlier in the year (when the A's were in Arlington) threw out the first pitch to his favorite player, Josh Hamilton. That's a moment that's hard to come back from; I imagine it was extremely emotional for the crowd, and Hamilton.
In other news, Matt Moore, the phenom rookie of the Rays, made just his SECOND Major League start and flat-out dominated the Rangers, allowing two hits in seven innings.
So on to Game Two. This one is set to be a doozy, pitting the Future 2011 Cy Young winner, Justin Verlander against CC Sabathia. MLB opens with:
One of the game's most electric settings and two of its most expert aces.
Really, what more do you want?
Honestly, what more DO you want? That's an incredible match-up.
Here are your lineups:
And, we're off!
Update:
This game never really got off the ground. A heavy rainstorm has suspended the game in a 1-1 tie in the second inning. The game is set to resume tomorrow in the prime-time billing slot, 8:37PM Eastern Time (must be nice being the Yankees). Tampa Bay and Texas play game two at 7:00PM Eastern, and the National League kicks off with Arizona/Milwaukee at 2:00PM Eastern, followed by St. Louis/Philadelphia at 5:00PM Eastern. So in our time zone, you get baseball at 11AM, 2PM, 4PM and 5:30PM. Holy back-to-back-to-back baseball, Batman!
PLAYOFFS!
