Series Preview: at Marlins, 3.31-4.2

Pitching Match-ups

Monday, 3.31 4:10 EST

Johan Santana (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Mark Hendrickson (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

Tuesday, 4.1 7:10 EST

Pedro Martinez (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Rick VandenHurk (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

Wednesday, 4.2 7:10 EST

Oliver Perez (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Andrew Miller (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

Notes

-This is the first series of the year for both teams.

-Johan Santana, Mark Hendrickson, and Andrew Miller will be making their first starts for their respective teams.

-The Mets begin the season with Moises Alou, Duaner Sanchez, Orlando Hernandez, Ramon Castro, and Jose Valentin among the notables on their 15-day disabled list.

- The Marlins pitching has been decimated by injuries the beginning of this year. Starter Anibal Sanchez, projected for the rotation this year, is on the 15-day DL, while starter Josh Johnson is on the 60-day DL, along with reliever Henry Owens. With Dontrelle Willis now a Detroit Tiger, Scott Olsen has become the most reliable starter in the rotation. That is a very bad sign for the Fish. He won’t be pitching in this series, however, due to spring training schedules. Nothing personal against the guy, but when Mark Hendrickson is starting Opening Day, you know your team is in trouble. This Marlins team could be really bad this year. Hanley Ramirez is all they’ve got.

-The Nationals beat the Braves tonight 3-2 with a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth by Ryan Zimmerman. The Braves are in last place.

And there was much rejoicing.

-Meanwhile, the Nats are in first place. Enjoy it, fellas. On another note, Milledge and Lo Duca went a combined 0-7, and L-Millz looked particularly bad waving at Tim Hudson’s sliders. We made the right decision, it would seem.

-It feels good to be back, doesn't it? Let's get it started! Aaand...

Let's Go Mets!