No one knew it at the time, but this was Opening Day for the Angels’ World Championship season. It did not get off to a fine start as they were whitewashed 6-0 by Bartolo Colon. Cleveland got more than enough runs, jumping Jarrod Washburn for four in the first. Colon was brilliant, going the distance on just 98 pitches, allowing five hits and two walks while fanning five
The Orioles got to Dave Burba for three in the third, while through four the Indians had just two baserunners against Jose Mercedes. They scratched home a run in the fifth, then tied it in the sixth on back-to-back homers from Juan Gonzalez and Jim Thome. Burba finished a solid outing (7 IP, 6 H, 1 W, 9 K, 108 pitches) working around a Brooks Fordyce double in the seventh. In the bottom of the inning, the Indians got four walks (including a pinch-hit walk from Marty Cordova in his Tribe debut) off Mercedes, BJ Ryan, and Calvin Maduro to take a 4-3 lead. Paul Shuey and Bob Wickman made that hold up, with the only blemish a two-out walk to David Segui in the eighth.
There was a eight minute fog delay between the fifth and sixth because what’s early April baseball without a weather delay?
I followed this game on whatever MLB had for a gametracker in 2000, using their scoresheet (and showing my devotion to ignoring Disney’s edict by crossing out “Anaheim” to write in “California”). The reason this game held such interest for me is that the Indians needed a Seattle loss to force a wildcard playoff.
Things stared off well, with the Angels plating two off Aaron Sele in the first. But that’s all they would get, scattering just five hits and a walk the rest of the way off Sele, Arthur Rhoades, and Kaz Sasaki. A-Rod homered in the fourth, Mike Cameron doubled home the tying run in the fifth, and David Bell homered to give them the lead in the seventh. Raul Ibanez delivered a two-run double, and the Mariners secured the wildcard berth 5-2.
The Indians struck first on this Opening Day in Anaheim on Kenny Lofton’s triple and Omar Vizquel’s homer in the third. Anaheim got one in the third and back-to-back solo shots from Tim Salmon and Garret Anderson in the fourth before Cleveland singled their way to three in the fifth. When the teams came back on the field for the sixth, Anaheim’s marquis free agent signing Mo Vaughn was out of the game with an inkle injury, putting a damper on things for the home crowd, but three straight Angel singles in the seventh made it 5-4 and drove Jaret Wright from the box, and Darin Erstad greeted Ricardo Rincon with a game-tying sac fly. Tim Salmon led off the bottom of the eighth with a hit off Steve Karsay, but was out when hit by Garret Anderson’s hit. But Troy Glaus doubled with two outs to give Anaheim the lead, and Troy Percival made quick work of the Tribe, needing just eight pitches to retire the heart of the order for the save in a 6-5 victory.
The Indians had a pair of two-run innings off Allen Watson to lead 4-1 entering the fifth, but Anaheim got four straight hits off Bartolo Colon and drove him from the game with the bases loaded and two outs after laboring with 105 pitches. Paul Shuey got out of it the Indians would take the lead back in the seventh on a two-out David Justice single off Mike Holtz. Up 5-4 in the ninth, Mike Jackson hit Dave Hollins, fanned Tim Salmon, and allowed a double to Jim Edmonds. Tim Naehring hit for Cecil Fielder and grounded to Jackson, who caught Hollins in a 1-5-2-6-5 out. But on an 0-2 pitch Garret Anderson singled to tie the game.
In the bottom of the ninth, Omar Vizquel and Kenny Lofton both singled and both were caught stealing. Eric Plunk retired Anaheim in order in the tenth, while Troy Percival, on for a second inning, gave up a hit to Manny Ramirez and a walk to Brian Giles. With two outs, Jim Thome launched a three-run homer for a very entertaining 8-5 Cleveland victory.
Roger Clemens plunked Marquis Grissom to open the game, and he was singled home by Matt Williams, but the Rocket held the Tribe in check for the next six frames. The Blue Jays got to Orel Hershiser in the sixth as Carlos Delgado tripled home the tying run and scored on a sac fly. Hershiser got two groundouts to start the seventh, but Otis Nixon singled and Alex Gonzalez homered and it was 4-1 Toronto. Clemens was lifted in the eighth and Matt Williams took Dan Pleasc deep to cut it to 4-2, but Ed Sprague answered with a homer off Eric Plunk to leadoff the bottom of the eighth. The Indians mustered a walk but nothing else as Mike Timlin got the save in the ninth.
I kept score of this game on the ballpark scorecard sold at Thurman Munson Stadium, where the Akron-Canton Indians were playing their last season before moving into their new digs in downtown Akron with their new name (Aeros). The Indians scored single runs in the first and fifth to take a 2-0 lead off Sea Dog starter Livan Hernandez, but the visitors put up a seven spot in the eighth en route to a 7-3 victory.
Hernandez was already famous a high-profile Cuban defector, and was quite gracious in signing autographs for young fans after the game, including one scrawled on my ticket stub in pencil. Other future big leaguers in this game included Luis Castillo, Todd Dunwoody, Kevin Millar, Mike Redmond, Bruce Aven, Richie Sexson, Alex Ramirez, Einar Diaz, Kevin Tolar, and Felix Heredia.
Only seven innings were required for OSU to defeat MSU as a ten-run rule after seven was in place for a doubleheader. Every Buckeye reached based safely, with eight of the nine starters collecting a hit and all ten who appeared either drove in or scored a run. A six-run seventh pushed the game into run rule territory, with Mitchell Okuley's two-run triple the biggest blow in the frame.
With the Caribbean Series being played in Miami in 2024, much of it ended up on US cable TV, providing a welcome early opportunity to get ready for the season. This game saw the eventual champions from Venezuela down the Dominican Republic. The two most notable names in the game were former stars Yasiel Puig who homered from Venezuela and Robinson Cano who drove in the only Dominican run with a sixth inning sacrifice fly.
In a harbinger of things to come for both Texas’ and Zach Plesac’s 2023, the Rangers hit the latter for five runs in an inning and two-thirds, capped by Corey Seager’s three-run homer. They also scored off Guardians bullpen regulars James Karinchak and Sam Hentges, while Jon Gray, Cole Ragans, and Dominic Leone combined to hold the Guardians’ regulars to just two hits through five innings. Cleveland reserves Angel Martinez and Micah Pries would homer in the seventh, but Texas kept adding with five in the eighth and rolled to a 13-4 win in Goodyear.
