by Shawn Sillinger
Interleague play resumes this week, with everyone but the St. Louis Cardinals and the Colorado Rockies taking on someone from the other circuit in three-game sets starting Friday night. Without rivalry games, however, the schedule for this first lot of contests is a real mixed bag, with very few matchups between strong teams grabbing our attention.
However, we?ll at least be treated to something a little different to shake things up a bit, even if it means we have to watch highlights from a series between the Minnesota Twins and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Here?s a look at all 14 interleague series that kick off on Friday, ranked from ?most watchable? to ?please turn the channel to the World Cup?.
Chicago White Sox at Cincinnati
Who would?ve thought this series would be of interest a few months ago? After a rough stretch, the Reds are winning again and making things much tighter for the Cardinals in the NL Central. The ChiSox, meanwhile, boast one of the best records in all of baseball.
Arizona at Texas
The Diamondbacks are still riding high in the NL West, but a losing streak last week has pushed them back to the pack. They?ll be looking to turn things around this week as they prepare for a series against the Rangers, who are currently in first in the AL West.
L.A. Dodgers at Oakland
A couple of western sleepers, with the A?s getting into position to challenge the Rangers in the American League, and the Dodgers trying to take advantage of the D-Backs? struggles. Barry Zito vs. Aaron Sele matchup is currently on the schedule for Saturday.
Boston at Atlanta
The Braves continue to fall off the pace in the NL East, and it?s bad timing that they have to face one of the AL?s best teams right now. They?ll need to pick up a victory or two at home versus Boston to keep themselves within sight of the Mets in the division.
N.Y. Yankees at Washington
New York vs. Washington sounds big, although the Nationals have been nothing special this season. Perhaps New York will swing a deal for former Yankee Alfonso Soriano during the set, and leave town with a solution for the injury woes in the team?s outfield.
Baltimore at N.Y. Mets
Too bad this series wasn?t taking place in Baltimore, as Orioles fans might be able to get a look at some actual pitchers when Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine take to the mound. As it stands, the O?s weak hurlers will be in tough versus the first-place Mets.
Detroit at Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have stabilized a bit over the past week, while the Tigers have run into a spot of trouble. Still, the Tigers are slated to send Robertson, Verlander, and Rogers to the mound in this series, which should give them a big edge on the depleted Chicago staff.
Toronto at Florida
The Nationals and Braves could do the Blue Jays a favor and knock off their AL East opposition while Toronto is playing the NL East?s doormat. The Blue Jays should miss ace Dontrelle Willis in this set, but will send ace Roy Halladay to the mound on Sunday.
Tampa Bay at Philadelphia
While the Mets are tangling with the pitching-poor Orioles, the Phillies will be taking on the marginally-worse Devil Rays. Could be a chance for Philadelphia to gain a bit of ground in the NL East, although they would?ve preferred to miss Scott Kazmir in the set.
San Diego at L.A. Angels
Maybe the Angels can fare better against National League opposition, because they?ve certainly been terrible versus the AL this season. The Padres are again hovering around the .500 mark, and they need improvement from Jake Peavy (who pitches on Saturday).
San Francisco at Seattle
We could see a Jason Schmidt vs. Felix Hernandez matchup on Saturday afternoon if each team?s rotation stays as scheduled. We could also see Barry Bonds matched up against Hernandez and Jamie Moyer back-to-back in a slight contrast in age and style.
Cleveland at Milwaukee
Two dark horse teams at the start of the season that are still struggling to get to the .500 mark after 60+ games. At least the Brewers weren?t expected to do more than improve; many had pegged the Indians as the team that would win the American League Central.
Kansas City at Houston
Too bad Roger Clemens is still on his tour of minor league facilities, otherwise we?d get to see what he could do against a Royals team that might have a hard time playing .250 baseball this season. The Astros need a sweep to get out of their NL Central doldrums.
Minnesota at Pittsburgh
If you think this series is going to be bad, just wait until the Royals and Pirates mix it up next week. To make things interesting, maybe the loser of that upcoming Royals/Pirates set should get demoted to AAA for the rest of the season? We?d certainly watch it then.
For MLB odds click here .
Interleague play resumes this week, with everyone but the St. Louis Cardinals and the Colorado Rockies taking on someone from the other circuit in three-game sets starting Friday night. Without rivalry games, however, the schedule for this first lot of contests is a real mixed bag, with very few matchups between strong teams grabbing our attention.
However, we?ll at least be treated to something a little different to shake things up a bit, even if it means we have to watch highlights from a series between the Minnesota Twins and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Here?s a look at all 14 interleague series that kick off on Friday, ranked from ?most watchable? to ?please turn the channel to the World Cup?.
Chicago White Sox at Cincinnati
Who would?ve thought this series would be of interest a few months ago? After a rough stretch, the Reds are winning again and making things much tighter for the Cardinals in the NL Central. The ChiSox, meanwhile, boast one of the best records in all of baseball.
Arizona at Texas
The Diamondbacks are still riding high in the NL West, but a losing streak last week has pushed them back to the pack. They?ll be looking to turn things around this week as they prepare for a series against the Rangers, who are currently in first in the AL West.
L.A. Dodgers at Oakland
A couple of western sleepers, with the A?s getting into position to challenge the Rangers in the American League, and the Dodgers trying to take advantage of the D-Backs? struggles. Barry Zito vs. Aaron Sele matchup is currently on the schedule for Saturday.
Boston at Atlanta
The Braves continue to fall off the pace in the NL East, and it?s bad timing that they have to face one of the AL?s best teams right now. They?ll need to pick up a victory or two at home versus Boston to keep themselves within sight of the Mets in the division.
N.Y. Yankees at Washington
New York vs. Washington sounds big, although the Nationals have been nothing special this season. Perhaps New York will swing a deal for former Yankee Alfonso Soriano during the set, and leave town with a solution for the injury woes in the team?s outfield.
Baltimore at N.Y. Mets
Too bad this series wasn?t taking place in Baltimore, as Orioles fans might be able to get a look at some actual pitchers when Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine take to the mound. As it stands, the O?s weak hurlers will be in tough versus the first-place Mets.
Detroit at Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have stabilized a bit over the past week, while the Tigers have run into a spot of trouble. Still, the Tigers are slated to send Robertson, Verlander, and Rogers to the mound in this series, which should give them a big edge on the depleted Chicago staff.
Toronto at Florida
The Nationals and Braves could do the Blue Jays a favor and knock off their AL East opposition while Toronto is playing the NL East?s doormat. The Blue Jays should miss ace Dontrelle Willis in this set, but will send ace Roy Halladay to the mound on Sunday.
Tampa Bay at Philadelphia
While the Mets are tangling with the pitching-poor Orioles, the Phillies will be taking on the marginally-worse Devil Rays. Could be a chance for Philadelphia to gain a bit of ground in the NL East, although they would?ve preferred to miss Scott Kazmir in the set.
San Diego at L.A. Angels
Maybe the Angels can fare better against National League opposition, because they?ve certainly been terrible versus the AL this season. The Padres are again hovering around the .500 mark, and they need improvement from Jake Peavy (who pitches on Saturday).
San Francisco at Seattle
We could see a Jason Schmidt vs. Felix Hernandez matchup on Saturday afternoon if each team?s rotation stays as scheduled. We could also see Barry Bonds matched up against Hernandez and Jamie Moyer back-to-back in a slight contrast in age and style.
Cleveland at Milwaukee
Two dark horse teams at the start of the season that are still struggling to get to the .500 mark after 60+ games. At least the Brewers weren?t expected to do more than improve; many had pegged the Indians as the team that would win the American League Central.
Kansas City at Houston
Too bad Roger Clemens is still on his tour of minor league facilities, otherwise we?d get to see what he could do against a Royals team that might have a hard time playing .250 baseball this season. The Astros need a sweep to get out of their NL Central doldrums.
Minnesota at Pittsburgh
If you think this series is going to be bad, just wait until the Royals and Pirates mix it up next week. To make things interesting, maybe the loser of that upcoming Royals/Pirates set should get demoted to AAA for the rest of the season? We?d certainly watch it then.
For MLB odds click here .
