The Oakland Athletics send resurgent starting pitcher Brandon McCarthy as they look to get back to the .500 mark once again. McCarthy is pitching as well as anybody in the rotation as he has a 2.10 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He’s gotten a mixed bag of run support, which is why he sits at 1-1 through four starts. McCarthy has a long way to go to prove he is completely back from the injuries that have dogged him in recent years. However, if he can stay healthy the entire season he could easily work his way into the running for comeback player of the year.
McCarthy will square off against Tyler Chatwood of the Los Angeles Angels. Chatwood was a second round pick for the Angels in 2008 and made a quick run through their farm system. He’s made three starts thus far at the major league level with some measure of success. His K/BB ratio is not pretty, but he’s escaped significant damage for the most part lately. We’ll see if the A’s can jump on him early.
Oakland Athletics
1. Coco Crisp (S) CF
2. David DeJesus (L) RF
3. Conor Jackson® 1B
4. Hideki Matsui (L) DH
5. Kurt Suzuki® C
6. Ryan Sweeney (L) LF
7. Mark Ellis® 2B
8. Kevin Kouzmanoff® 3B
9. Cliff Pennington (S) SS
Los Angeles Angels
1. Erick Aybar (S) SS
2. Bobby Abreu (L) DH
3. Torii Hunter® RF
4. Vernon Wells® LF
5. Alberto Callaspo (S) 3B
6. Howard Kendrick® 1B
7. Hank Conger (S) C
8. Peter Bourjos® CF
9. Alexi Amarista (L) 2B