Royals vs. White Sox
Thursday, April 23rd
Probable Pitchers:
KC – Ventura
CWS – Sale
In the past year, the Royals have transformed from being the butt of a joke into to a must-watch team. The Royals are particularly captivating when their young fireballer Yordano Ventura is on the mound. Not only does Ventura have absolutely electric stuff, but he appears to get under the skin of his opponents. In two of Ventura’s three outings this season, tempers have flared as the Royals exchanged heated words with both the Angels and A’s. Whether or not benches clear against the White Sox, the Royals are playing great baseball to start the season. Picking up right where they left off after last year’s late run that landed them in the World Series, the Royals are riding their outstanding bullpen and bolstered offense right out of the gate.
Those Royals bats will be going up against one of the league’s best in Chris Sale, who has posted two strong starts to begin the year. Sale hasn’t wasted any time coming back from his fractured foot, racking up 14 strikeouts en route to a 2-0 record to begin the year. Meanwhile, Chicago’s Cuban sensation Jose Abreu has slugged three home runs in the past week as he begins to return to his rookie season form.
With the White Sox sending their lefty ace to the mound against the young Ventura, this game serves as a great opportunity for Chicago to try and slow down the Royals and gain some ground in the AL Central, which has so far proved to be the toughest division in baseball.
Mets vs. Yankees
Friday, 4/24 at 7:05pm
Saturday, 4/25 at 4:05pm
Sunday, 4/26 at 8:05pm
Yankees vs. Mets is an easy matchup to circle on the calendar and predict to be a big one, but the first Subway Series of 2015 promises to be particularly compelling. With the narrative of each team racing in opposite directions, this weekend’s series will be the perfect place for the surging Mets to prove that they are to be taken seriously in 2015 or for the Yankees to let everyone know that they shouldn’t be counted out just yet.
The winners of ten straight games going into Thursday’s action, the Mets will be sending Jake DeGrom (Friday), and Matt Harvey (Saturday) to the mound in the Bronx. Two of the game’s most exciting young pitchers will get a chance to pitch with the national spotlight on them as they go up against a potent Yankees offense.
While the Yankees have struggled mightily in the field, their bats have kept them afloat in the early going. Particularly impressive is Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod is in the top ten in home runs, RBIs, and walks, and seems intent on embarrassing those of us who continually passed on him in our fantasy drafts this year.
With two of the three games being nationally televised and all of New York breathing down their necks, both the Mets and Yankees know that this series may just be an early indicator as to what type of season is in store for them. Either way, it will be a great opportunity for the New York media to make an enormous deal about three games in April.
Dodgers vs. Padres
Friday, April 24
Probable Pitches:
LAD – Greinke
SD – Cashner
If you have not had a chance to check out the new-look Padres, you may want to tune in this Friday when they take on the division-rival Dodgers. In 2015, teams have to get used to thinking of the Padres as rivals. San Diego has won 10 of their first 16 games and lead the National league in runs per game as well as RBIs (while the Dodgers rank second in both categories). There are a lot of notable new faces in this Padres lineup, including former AL Rookie of the Year Will Myers, Derek Norris, Justin Upton, Will Middlebrooks, and former Dodger Matt Kemp. The new acquisitions have not disappointed so far, and will be looking for payback after dropping two of their first three games against the Dodgers.
The Padres will be up against a red-hot Zack Greinke, who touts a 1.83 era to begin the season, while Andrew Cashner will be making the start for the Padres. After tossing two complete games and posting an era of 2.55 in 2014, Cashner is poised to have a big year for San Diego. However, the Dodgers roughed up the righty the last time the two met, notching five runs on eight hits over five innings. LA’s lineup has continued to be an offensive force this year, with veteran Adrian Gonzalez leading the way with his monster start. While players like Gonzalez and Puig look to anchor the lineup, outfielder Scott Van Slyke has been crushing the ball in his limited playing time. With role players to bolster their already powerful lineup, the Dodgers are a force to be reckoned with, and this weekend, the Padres hope to prove that the same can be said about them.