Twins - Angels: 2008 Opening Day March 30th, 2008 at 9:55 pm

Game Time: 6:05 PM (CT) Location: Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Opponent: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Real baseball is finally upon us. Thankfully our shiny new stadium is still two years away—tomorrow’s forecast: High of 33° with snow likely. It will be 70° and dry in the dome and for about 1 week we can actually appreciate our otherwise crappy ballpark.

The big story, of course, is the return of Torii Hunter, as an Angel, but it will also be the opportunity to get a first look at many of the Twins’ new faces. Among the starters, the new faces you’ll see include:

Brendan Harris, 2B
Adam Everett, SS
Mike Lamb, 3B
Delmon Young, LF
Carlos Gomez, CF
Livan Hernandez, SP

Some players you won’t be seeing:

Johan Santana, New York Mets
Torii Hunter, (well, you will see him, just not in the right uniform)
Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay
Luis Castillo, Mets
Rondell White, Retired (I almost forgot about him too)
Carlos Silva, Mariners
Matt Garza, Tampa Bay

Check out my 2008 roster post, which serves as an index to the player projections I’ve been working on the past couple weeks.

Pitching Matchup

Livan Hernandez Jered Weaver

The matchup is not what you would expect for opening day. The Twins will send out veteran Livan Hernandez, who may actually be the worst pitcher in the rotation. The Angels, plagued with early injuries to John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar, will send out Jered Weaver, who posted a 13-7 record with a 3.91 ERA.

What to look for

Joe Mauer is healthy and is due to bounce back after a flat 2007
Delmon Young is 22 years old and already has a quality MLB season on his resume. Watch for his strong arm in LF.
Adam Everett is considered the best defensive shortstop of this generation. I can’t wait to see a couple balls hit his way.
Carlos Gomez is fast. If we’re lucky, we’ll see him chase down a fly ball he has no business catching and maybe steal a base or two.
The heart of the lineup: Mauer, Young, Morneau and Cuddyer fill out the 2 through 5 spots in the lineup.
If Joe Nathan makes it into the game in the 9th, he’ll be payed approximately $170,000 to pitch that inning.

Livan was 11-11 with a 4.93 ERA as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2008. He had a 6.38 ERA in 24.0 spring innings.

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6 Comments

Dean Tino wrote: March 31st, 2008 at 11:00 pm

No, I think the real story tonight is how sad it was to realize how the selfish shortsightedness of the Twins and political leadership has saddled us with a new stadium without a retractable roof. Would the "outdoor" baseball people cheer tonight as you looked around at the people who would not have been able to attend tonight's game. Three of those would have included my 85 year old mother and her siblings who loves baseball and have been Twins fan since the coming of the Twins in the early 60's. Baseball a family tradition is now a sport for the strong and tough. I always thought it was America's pasttime. As a son who was brought to games by my parents, I had a tear in my eye as I realized that privilege will be taken from me. How many games in the early spring and fall will not be cancelled but will not be accessable to those who would help to fill (and pay for) a new Shame on you Twins

Kris wrote: March 31st, 2008 at 11:09 pm

I think the weather we're seeing today isn't the norm for this time of the year. Had the Twins started the year on a 7-game road trip instead of vice versa, there would be no issue.

There are a number of cities with open-air stadiums that are susceptible to bad weather in the spring. The fact is, most of the time it's pretty nice in Minnesota in the summer. I have yet to see an retractable roof stadium that doesn't feel more like a dome (Milwaukee's Miller Park, for example, is nice, but it just doesn't feel like outdoor baseball).

Dean Tino wrote: March 31st, 2008 at 11:24 pm

I have lived only in Minnesota for over 50 years and I beg to differ with your observation of spring weather. It is not unusual to have cold, rainy and even snowy weather. The fact was that I was not speaking to our "pretty nice in Minnesota in the summer weather" I speaking to April, May, September and hopefully October. Also the point was not how something felt as a purist but about the accessability to a group of people who deserve to enjoy a baseball game. Also, i am guessing you haven't experienced the issues local high schools have in trying to get their complete schedules in, because of spring weather.

Dean Tino wrote: March 31st, 2008 at 11:38 pm

Chris Dohman wrote: April 1st, 2008 at 11:45 am

Come on Dean Tino. Minnesota has some of the best summer weather in the U.S. A roof of any sort would do nothing but ruin Twins baseball like the humpty-dump. Twins fans deserve to see baseball at it's best and that is outside without a retractable roof that gets closed any time a cloud floats over Fargo or temps are below 70 degrees. I'm sorry if your mother is unable to attend a cold opener but surely there are plenty of games later in the season she can attend.

Two massive thumbs up to the Twins and their decision to make a real ballpark without a roof of any sort!

Kris wrote: April 1st, 2008 at 10:12 pm

You have a good point, Dean, and I wouldn't be terribly opposed to a well-designed retractable roof. I just don't think it's an issue worth getting riled up over.

Sometimes I think the difference between Minneapolis weather and other northern U.S. cities is a bit exaggerated out of "Minnesota pride."

I've seen weather statistics before that suggest an open-air stadium in Minneapolis isn't such I bad idea. I should track those down and do a write-up on it. It'd definitely make for a good debate!

Thanks for your feedback, and sorry about the crappy comment system that makes it easy to double post. Someday I'll fix that :-)