The bunting flapped brightly in the strong breeze. The smell of leather and
liniment was in the air. It was OPENING DAY in Mudville! Da Bronx
Brawlers were in town. Optimism reigned supreme. How quickly it was dashed.


Jamie Moyer vs. Vicente Padilla (Game 1 – Day 1)

Vladimir Guerrero brought the crowd to its feet, when he drilled a lead-off
home run in his first at bat in the 2nd inning. The Brawlers would tie
the game in the 5th, when Padilla would issue three straight two-out walks
(one of them intentional), to force in a run.

Da Bronx grabbed the lead in the 6th, when Jeremy Giambi (remember that
name), launched a two-run blast. The Spiders would pull within one in the
6th, on a triple by Paul Lo Duca, followed by a single from Jeff Bagwell.

However, the Brawlers got the run right back in the 7th, as Rey Sanchez
doubled home Geoff Blum, sending Padilla to the showers. Although both teams
threatened to score the rest of the way, neither one did, and Da Bronx
had taken the opener.

The essentials:

Brawlers 000 012 100 – 4 12 2 LOB: 15
Mudville 010 001 000 – 2 7 2 LOB: 9

Brawlers Data:

Pitching – Moyer (W) 9
Catching – Myers 9
Home Runs – Giambi (6th, off Padilla, 1 on)
Stolen Bases – None
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – None

Mudville Data:

Pitching – Padilla (L) 6, Stanton 1, King 2
Catching – Lo Duca 9
Home Runs – Guerrero (2nd, off Moyer, 0 on)
Stolen Bases – None
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – Banks (A), Hudson (I), Infante (I)

Other Info:

Day game, Temperature – 48, Partly cloudy,
Wind in at 10-19 mph, Home umpire - Danley (N)


Cory Lidle vs. Jason Schmidt (Game 2 – Day 2)

Jeremy Giambi began the game by drilling Schmidt's first pitch for a home run,
his 2nd in as many games. It got worse in the 4th, when the Brawlers
crossed the plate five times, three coming home courtesy of still another
Giambi blast. The Spiders were wondering if Jeremy's brother had somehow snuck into
the Brawler lineup.

The arachnids tried to fight back in the 4th, when Craig Counsell drove home
two runs. However, the Brawlers answered back with single tallies in the 5th
and 6th innings.

The Spiders would score twice on three hits in the 9th, but by then, it was
simply window-dressing.

The essentials:

Brawlers 100 511 000 – 8 19 0 LOB: 13
Mudville 000 200 002 – 4 9 0 LOB: 9

Brawlers Data:

Pitching – Lidle (W) 7.1, Wohlers 1, Cordero 0.2
Catching – Myers 9
Home Runs – Giambi (1st, off Schmidt, 0 on),
Giambi (4th, off Schmidt, 2 on)
Stolen Bases – None
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – None

Mudville Data:

Pitching – Schmidt (L) 4, Carrara 1, Banks 2, King 1,
Coggin 1
Catching – Lo Duca 9
Home Runs – None
Stolen Bases – Guerrero
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – Banks (A), Bragg 0/1, Hudson (I), Infante (I)

Other Info:

Night game, Temperature - 40, Clear,
Wind out at 10-19 mph, Home umpire – Gibson (N)


Chris Reitsma vs. Mike Maroth (Game 3 – Day 3)

The temperature remained cold for game three, as did the bats for the Spiders.
The Brawlers scored single runs in the first two innings, one scored by, and
the other driven in by, who else?, Jeremy Giambi.

Mudville got one back on a run-scoring single by Craig Counsell and the game
remained 2-1, until the 5th, when the visitors added two more runs, one of them
unearned.

Da Bronx would return the favor, giving up an unearned run in the 6th, but that
was it. The game would end with further indignity for Mudville, as ex-Spider
Mariano Rivera would close out the game for his first save of the year.

So, once again, the Spiders have dug themselves an early hole (expletives
deleted). The series MVP was clearly Jeremy Giambi, who went 7-for-13, with 2
doubles, 3 homers, 7 runs and 7 RBI, all while batting lead-off.

The essentials:

Brawlers 110 020 000 – 4 7 1 LOB: 9
Mudville 010 001 000 - 2 6 2 LOB: 7

Brawlers Data:

Pitching – Reitsma (W) 7.2, Mota 0.1, Rivera (S) 1
Catching – T Wilson 6, Myers 3
Home Runs – None
Stolen Bases – Cameron
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – None

Mudville Data:

Pitching – Maroth (L) 6, Carrara 3
Catching – Lo Duca 9
Home Runs – None
Stolen Bases – None
Injuries – None
Ejections – None
Limits Used – Banks (A), Hudson (I), Infante (I)

Other Info:

Night game, Temperature - 44, Partly cloudy,
Wind left-to-right at 10-19 mph, Home umpire – DeMuth (S)