MLB: What to Watch This Weekend (4/15 – 4/17)
There’s plenty of baseball to watch every weekend. Which MLB games should you be most looking forward to?
Each Friday at Call to the Pen we’ll try and give you a preview of the biggest MLB match-ups for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Friday, 4/15 – Kershaw vs. Bumgarner II
Time: 10:10 PM EDT
Yes, we just saw this match-up less than a week ago. How can you not be excited though when two of the most dominant pitchers in baseball face off? Not only is there the excitement of seeing both starters on the mound, but there’s the intrigue of seeing them face off against each other once again. In last week’s contest Madison Bumgarner hit his second career home run off of Clayton Kershaw, and you can be sure Kershaw will be looking to get the better of the match-up this time around.
Both teams come into tonight’s game with 6-4 records. Los Angeles is coming off of taking two out of three from Arizona. Adrian Gonzalez and Yasiel Puig have been powering the Dodgers offense this season. Gonzalez is hitting .375/.422/.550 to go with one home run and 8 RBIs. Many hoped that this would be a bounce-back year for Puig and so far it has been. He’s come out hitting .405/.500/.622.
The Giants most recently dropped two out of three to the Rockies. They got disappointing starts from Jake Peavy and Matt Cain, and they’ll be looking for Bumgarner to steady the ship. Offensively, Travis Brown and Brandon Belt have brought the power for the Giants so far. They both have hit three home runs, and Belt has also racked up six walks.
Honorable mention: Zack Greinke will look to bounce back from his early missteps as he faces off against the struggling Padres (10:40 PM EST).
Next: An NL Central Showdown
Saturday, 4/16 – Cardinals vs. Reds
Time: 2:15 PM EDT
To be honest, there aren’t a lot of great games on paper this Saturday. Perhaps the most interesting game will be when the St. Louis Cardinals square off against the Cincinnati Reds. Adam Wainwright is on the hill for the Cardinals. He missed a good portion of last season due to a torn achilles.
Cincinnati will send Brandon Finnegan out to face their division rivals. In his last appearance Finnegan took a no-hitter into the 7th, but he was eventually knocked out of the game. Cincinnati is coming off being swept by the Cubs, and it will be interesting to see how they respond. They were one of the early surprises of the baseball season with a 5-1 record, but the previous series was more of what people expected. Eugenio Suarez is off to a fast start for the Reds. He’s hitting .353/.421/.706, and he’s already hit four home runs.
The Cardinals were swept by the Pirates out of the gate, but they’ve since gotten their record to 5-4. Wainwright has struggled in his first two starts back running a 6.55 ERA in 11 innings. St. Louis has gotten surprise production from 28-year-old Jeremy Hazelbaker. This has been his first opportunity in the majors and in 27 at-bats he’s hit .481/.484/1.000 to go along with a team leading three home runs.
Honorable Mentions: Matt Harvey takes the mound for the Mets against Cleveland (4:10 PM EST). The best “Story” of the 2016 season get his chance to face off against Jake Arrieta in Chicago (2:20 PM EST).
Next: Two New Acquisitions on the Big Stage
Sunday, 4/17 – Giants vs. Dodgers
Time: 8:05 PM EDT
Yes, for the second time this weekend I’m picking Los Angeles vs. San Francisco as the game to watch. Honestly it was tempting to do it all three days. The pitching match-ups in this series are consistently interesting, and both teams should content for the NL West crown.
The Giants send will send out Jeff Samardzija in this one. He was one of the more polarizing contract signings this offseason. San Francisco signed him to a five-year, $90 million contract, but he was coming off one of the worst full seasons in his career. In 2015 Samardzija started 32 games for the White Sox, and accumulated a 4.96 ERA. He also led the league in hits against (228) and earned runs allowed (118). This early season test against a division rival will give him a chance to make a statement. So far this season he has a 3.38 ERA in two starts.
The Dodgers will also get an early look at a new acquisition. Kenta Maeda, who previously pitched for eight seasons in Japan, was signed by the Dodgers in January. Many were surprised to hear that he signed for eight years and only $25 million. However, concerns about his health kept his price down, and he has the opportunity to make significantly more money through incentives. In two starts this season Maeda is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA. Opponents are only hitting .222 against him, but San Francisco will try and be the first team to get the better of the 28-year-old right-hander.
Honorable Mention: Steven Matz and Corey Kluber provide an intriguing pitching match-up as the Mets and Indians square off at 1:10 PM EST.