Just sliding this one under the wire, since the game is due to start in 20 minutes. At least I'll get to watch a couple of innings before I have to go to work.
By now, I was hoping to have the series all wrapped up, with a chance of going for the sweep. However, our poor pitching in the first two games, particularly from our bullpen, means the shoe is on the other foot, and today we face Dodgers ace Lowe. He went seven innings and got a tough loss in the opener, while our man, Russ Ortiz, produced the best performance first time through our rotation, getting the win for six innings of three-run ball.
Lowe is about the only pitcher we'll see this season who can rival Brandon Webb in terms of ground balls. Does that set off Royce Clayton GIDP alarm bells ringing in your head too? This will be the first time our offense has had to face anyone better than a #3 starter, and will be a genuine test to see if they can handle quality pitching rather than back of rotation scrubs like Ryan Dempster and Scott Erickson.
Thoughts, comments, etc. are welcome as ever!