Game Day: May 5th, 2006

Cinco de Mayo and it is what, a Tuesday?  How did the boxing go last weekend?  I'll have to check the news, I haven't been following the boxing news all that closely.  Cinco de Mayo has long been a big weekend in the boxing world.  I wonder how they are incorporating it into MLB games this season?

A quick look at the standings has the Chicago White Sox at 17-18 and that isn't all that bad for a team that I had picked to finish in last place.  They are getting good pitching.  Davis Martin has emerged as the righty Max Fried.  He doesn't have the big curve ball but he can pitch.  Martin is on track to be an all-star this season.  He pitched last night and posted what might have been the best game of his career.

Eric Fedde gets the ball tonight in a 7:38 PM CDT start at Rate Field in Chicago.  Fedde must like it in the Windy City.  He enters the game at (0-3) but has pitched well, a 3.24 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP in 33.1 innings.  The White Sox are a young team.  I don't expect them to make the playoffs but the competitiveness and exuberance they have played with early in the season suggests that it is a possibility.  They'll get Kyle Teel back and have a few good prospects on the farm that could contribute to what might be a winning season on the Southside.

The Mets are in last place in the NL East.  Their roster is a jumble but they have won two in a row and have Freddy Peralta on the mound.  Colorado has dropped five straight and Michael Lorenzon, who starts for the Rockies, hasn't been all that effective.  He did post a victory over the Mets earlier this season.  The Mets need this game and need this winning streak.  A sweep of the Rockies in Colorado would have them feeling good.  New York plays a weekend series with the Diamondbacks in AZ with an off-day on Thursday.  If they can get it to 17-23 by the end of the weekend, there is a good possibility they can get to .500 by the end of May.  The Mets play 10 games against the Nationals and the Marlins to end the month.

A big series on the Northside of Chicago this week.  The Cubs host the Reds for a four-game set.  Chicago took Game One 5-4 in dramatic fashion, scoring a pair in the bottom of the ninth inning off Reds closer Emilio Pagan.  Michael Conforto walked it off with a solo homerun, his first of the season.  Conforto is proving to be a big addition to the Cubs, who lead the Reds by three games for first place in the NL Central.  This division is as competitive as any division in MLB this season.  All five teams currently sit at .500 or better in the standings.  

Out to the NL West, we have another rivalry series in progress.  Game Two between the Giants and the Padres in a 7:40 CDT start at Pac Bell in San Francisco.  The Giants have looked as good as the Mets early.  That is to say that they haven't looked that good at all but they did win the opener against the Padres.  It was a special performance from rookie Trevor McDonald, an 11th round pick (2019) out of George County HS in Lucedale, MS. McDonald threw 7.0 innings, struck out eight, and only allowed a pair of hits in the win.  The Giants weren't necessarily counting on McDonald this season.  If he continues to throw like he did on Monday night, the Giants will be in a good spot with their rotation.  Their ace, Logan Webb, starts tonight against veteran and two-time all star, Walker Buehler.  It should be a good game tonight in what is the Tuesday Night Game of the Week.  

I'll be back before post time with another practice pick.  It is still the preseason at MLB Pickstreak.  Another week to work on the daily routine and the posts before we go live with the action.  

Stay Tuned.