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Another day, another D-backs game of which I won't get to see a single pitch. Kinda sucks. After a sterling performance by Livan last night, with his 60 mph lollipop curves, we see whether our other spring training bust, Doug Davis, can bounce back in equally resounding fashion. Of course, we here will be equally happy to see Lopez sucking, both for the usual reason, and our bet with Purple Row. He's got seven innings of two-run ball from Livan to beat. Let's hope he doesn't.
Hudson and Byrnes both have good numbers against Lopez - 7-for-19 and 5-for-15 respectively. So don't be surprised to see them 3 and 4 in the lineup. Clark is the only other player to have faced him, but is only 1-for-11. Presumably these were all back when Lopez was the AL, with Baltimore. Similarly, Taveras and Finley are the only Rockies with double-digit ABs against Davis, who'll be making his first start in Coors.
S'funny how much difference there is between winning the opening series 2-1, and losing it. The former would give us a good push into the Nationals (whom, it appears, are thoroughly sucky this year), while the latter would send us into recovery mode. As a general rule, I'd be happy to settle for a 4-3 road trip, but going 5-2 would be much better. A win today will be a significant step along the road in both of these destinations.