4/6/09 Monday - Twins vs Seattle

Update

The luster in this matchup was dimmed a bit by the abscence of so many star-caliber players. For the last month we suspected that Joe Mauer would be missing, but last week we found out that Scott Baker wasn't going to be the Opening Day starter because of a stiff shoulder. And yet the Mariners might have had even a worse surprise.

This weekend their star leadoff man Ichiro Suzuki went on the DL with a bleeding ulcer. Suzuki just led Team Japan to a World Baseball Chamipionship title and was being followed by hordes of Japanese media as he was three hits shy of breaking the record for most hits by a Japanese player. Like Baker, his team hopes he'll be back soon, but Twins fans will miss their only chance to see Suzuki this year live.

Pitching Probables

Twins:  Francisco Liriano (2008):  3.91 ERA, 76 IP, 67K, 32 BB, 74 H, 7 HR

Background:  He wasn't supposed to be the Opening Day starter, but Scott Baker was put on the DL.  Since that happened during the last week of spring training, Liriano is being pressed into duty with just three days of rest, whereas most starting pitchers get four. 

Watch For:  Considering he's know for his stuff and strikeouts, it might suprise you to know that Liriano throws his fastball less frequently than any other Twins starter. Liriano throws it around 50% of the time, while most of the rest of the starters throw it closer to 70%.

If you watch the radar gun, you'll see that Liriano will use his fastball early in the count or when he's ahead in the count, and his slider when he falls behind. Once he gets two strikes on a batter he's more likely to throw a slider than anything else. He saves his changeup almost exclusively for right-handed batters. And he likes to attack right-handed batters inside and low.

Mariners:  "King" Felix Hernandez (2008):  3.45 ERA, 200.2 IP, 175K, 80 BB, 198 H, 17 HR

Background:  Hernandez was supposed to be the next big thing when he came into the majors four years ago.  Such is the problem with hype.  The 22-year-old has over 666 innings under his belt alread and a career .3.80 ERA - and still people are dissappointed with him.  We should all have such dissappointment.  

Watch For:  He leans most on the fastball, but he has three offspeed pitches and uses them all equally.  Also, his pitch selection doesn't change much - ahead in the count, behind in the count, two strikes, first pitch - with one exception.  Versus left-handed batters, he'll use his changeup quite a bit, but he almost never uses it against right-handers.