This is the one where a super hung over pitcher and a super hungover nine other guys try to pretend they're not hung over. Or still drunk.
Blackburn's job today is to get in a few innings, and then let the bullpen take over and fnish the game. Ideally, he'd not let things get out of hand and actually pitch well, and considering he's pitching against the Indians there's a good chance he's able to do that even if he's still a bit unbalanced.
Since his return from AAA, Blackburn is sporting a 2.05 ERA and .566 opponent OPS.
Just Carrascho's fifth start in 2010, he's already blanked the Twins over seven and a third innings. That was 11 days ago. Can the Twins offense improve on that awful line? In their current state?
As you can see, he's had a pretty good September. Four starts, all quality, and he's making a bid to be in Cleveland's rotation from Opening Day in 2011. I think it's about time he had to pitch through a little more adversity...
...although maybe not with this lineup. Almost everyone is getting the day off (thanks, September rosters!) which isn't a bad thing today. Regulars Span, Kubel and Valencia are getting the shaft from Gardy...although Danny's a rookie, so it's expected. If we score more than three runs this afternoon, I'll be amazed.