Buerhle’s Opening Day Theatrics Followed By Zambrano Meltdown
Yesterday was opening day for baseball on both sides of town, and the results could not have been more different. Sox fans will tell you that this is a sign of things to come, while Cubs fans will say that it was one game and we all just need to relax. I don’t know the answers, but I do know that the contrast between Buerhle and Zambrano was on display.
Zambrano got lit up, giving up 8 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks in just 1.1 innings of work. While it was nice to see new addition Marlon Byrd go yard, as well as Ramirez, Big Z was the biggest problem. Even the bullpen had some good moments in the 16-5 loss, and 5 runs is normally considered enough to win. The two lefties Marshall and Russell combined for 4.2 innings of 2-hit no-run ball. But Z, oh big Z. He has the most electric stuff, but where does his head go? And you know he lacks the ability to recover from a bad inning or even a bad at-bat. For all those that think this year will be any different for Z in terms of learning to control his emotions, you are sorely mistaken.
Mark Buerhle’ description is the exact opposite. This year will be no different for him in that he is the ultimate gamer. The lefty gets guys out, and he does it quickly. It really feels like he’s playing catch out there. As a Cubs fan, I hear my fellow Cubs fans disparaging him year after year, talking about how he’s getting older and he’s “crafty” and all that kind of nonsense. They are wrong. The guy comes to play every time he takes the mound. I would rather have 1 Buerhle with his decent skill-set and winning mentality than a 1,000 Zambranos with million dollar stuff and a 10 cent head. The Sox got some help from their bats as well in the 6-0 victory, with Konerko and Rios hitting dingers.
Not only is Buerhle more reliable, but the guy is just more fun. Check out this crazy play he made during yesterday’s game:
Baseball!!!!
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Comment from Andrew
Time April 6, 2010 at 12:29 pm
Don’t forget, Buehrle won the Gold Glove Last year. Also, I remember a couple years ago I would ask Cub fans if they’d rather Zambrano or Buehrle, and they would laugh at an answer of Buehrle. Things are way different, or actually nothing is different, excpet Cub fans are finally facing the reality that a #1 starter labeled as a liabilty at times is not what you ever want.