Bountiful Boxscores Jason Michael Barker

This early in the season, there are little, if any, conclusions to be drawn from what players and even teams have done thus far. You know, small sample size and all that. Perhaps the most interesting thing to do is read through the boxscores each night, something I do already but you might not.

Wait -- that doesn't look as good on paper as I thought it would, and in fact it sounds downright boring. Bear with me, though, as you can find interesting little tidbits embedded within all those columns. Take Tuesday night, for example:

In Cleveland, Oakland rookie Mark Mulder won his big league debut 8-5 over the Indians. Mulder didn't pitch particularly well -- four earned runs and two homers in six innings -- but it was enough to earn the "W" thanks to all that run support and three shutout innings from his bullpen. Mulder is considered a top prospect, although his numbers at AAA last season aren't especially eye-popping. Of particular concern is his low strikeout rate (just 5.7 per nine innings), which is odd given his size (6'6") and that he's supposedly a hard thrower. He should benefit from Oakland's offense and from pitching in a pitcher-friendly park, however, so go ahead and pick him up in your fantasy league.

Onward to Toronto, where the Blue Jays are considering asking fans to try out for their pitching staff after it surrendered 47 runs to the Mariners in a three-game series this weekend. Tuesday night Jays' pitchers were at it again, giving up 16 runs to the Angels. Anaheim rookie 2B Adam Kennedy had a huge night, with four hits in five at-bats including a grand slam homer, a triple, and eight runs batted in.

Kennedy is off to a great start this year after coming over from St. Louis in the Jim Edmonds deal, where he would have been stuck behind Fernando Vina. Heading into play Tuesday Kennedy was hitting .327/.373/.455, a line very similar to what he put up in AAA last season. Can he keep it up? I don't think he's going to hit over .300 this season, and he's not particularly young (24), but he looks like a good cheap solution for the Angels.

In Texas, Gabe Kapler hit a home run, his first since hitting a pair on Opening Day. Justin Thompson has yet to pitch for the Rangers, Frank Catalanotto is hurt, and Francisco Cordero's ERA is over five. Perhaps that Juan Gonzalez trade doesn't look so good after all?

In Cincinnati, Ken Griffey Jr. took another oh-fer as the Reds lost 13-9 to the Giants. Junior is now hitting .176 on the young season. He's going to break out of this slump any time now, right?

In Florida, the first-place Marlins -- yes, first-place Marlins -- beat the Pirates 12-5 behind seven strong innings from rookie Brad Penny. He even helped his own cause a bit with two hits in four at-bats and a run batted in. Like Mulder, Penny has good control. Unlike Mulder, Penny hits 95 on the radar gun and struck out better than a batter per inning in the minors last season. He'll also benefit from pitching in a pitcher-friendly park, and he's a good early candidate for National League Rookie of the Year.

Mike Hampton won his first game as a Met Tuesday night, a 10-7 win over the Brewers. As you might guess from the final score, Hampton didn't pitch particularly well -- five earned runs and six walks in seven and two-thirds innings pitched. While he's always walked quite a few batters in his career, he's now walked 23 hitters in just 21.1 innings this season, which is ugly no matter which way you slice it. How long before the Mets panic and pull the trigger on a deal for another starting pitcher?

John Rocker pitched a scoreless ninth for the Braves in Atlanta. I'm happy to see that he was outdone by Brian Hunter, who hit a game-winning homer in the twelfth.

Finally, here's something you won't find the boxscores from Tuesday night. Major League officials are expecting that former Dodger manager Tommy "Pasta Man" Lasorda will be named manager of the United States baseball team that will represent the country in the upcoming Olympic Games in Sydney. In retrospect, it's good that he'll be managing and not the general manager -- he'd no doubt trade away a slew of prospects to the Germans for an aging closer and a horrible starting pitcher.

about the author

Jason Michael Barker was hoping that with Mulder on the mound, he might get to see Scully catching. Send him fake pictures of Gillian Anderson squatting behind the plate to jmb@strikethree.com.