By Brian Waller AngelsWin.com Columnist
In a little over 24 hours the most anticipated season in Angels history
will begin. Expectations are at all time high for this franchise, and
how can they not be, the Angels added the greatest player on the planet,
Albert Pujols, to an already competitive team. Combine that with the
addition of one of baseball's best left-handed pitchers in C.J. Wilson
and a returning Kendrys Morales and you have a recipe for a special
season. It all starts tomorrow at 7:05 p.m. at the "Big A" in Anaheim,
CA as the Kansas City Royals come to town to face the Halos in the
opening series of the 2012 season. The Angels finished spring training
with a 19-12 record while the Royals finished 16-16. First baseman Eric
Hosmer and third baseman Mike Moustakas look poised to have big years
offensively for the Royals while Jonathan Sanchez and Jonathan Broxton
look to give the rotation and bullpen some stability. The Royals have a
nice mixture of young talented kids and experienced veterans and may
turn some heads in 2012.
Pitching Match-ups:
The Angels will send Jered Weaver to the mound for their season opener on Friday, Dan Haren on Saturday and Ervin Santana on Sunday. The Royals will counter with Bruce Chen, Luke Hochevar and Jonathan Sanchez.
Game Times / Channels:
Friday – 7:05 p.m. / FSW, ESPN2
Saturday – 1:05 p.m. / FOX
Player(s) to Watch:
Albert Pujols is a player you want to watch every series but the fact that he is making his “official” debut at the “Big A” this weekend means all eyes will be on #5. I say “official” because technically he made his debut against the Dodgers at the “Big A” this past Monday but that was pre-season…everyone knows that doesn’t count.
Kendrys Morales is another player to watch this weekend for two reasons, the first being that he will finally play a regular season game for the first time in nearly two years. The second reason is because he has struggled the last week or so and it will be interesting to see if those struggles continue or if he will start the season like he started spring training, red hot!
Fearless Series Predictions(s):
The Angels will win 2 out of 3 games this weekend against the Royals; pounding Bruce Chen on Friday, losing a close one to Luke Hochevar on Saturday and then knocking around Jonathan Sanchez on Sunday.
Albert Pujols will homer on Opening Night.
Jonathan Sanchez won’t last 4 innings against the Halos on Sunday.
Interesting Facts:
Here are a few fun Opening Day facts…
On the first day of the 1910 season, William Howard Taft became the first president to throw the ceremonial first pitch. Since then, every president besides Jimmy Carter has thrown at least one ceremonial first ball for Opening Day, the All-Star Game or the World Series.
Harry Truman was the only president to throw out left-handed and right-handed first pitches on Opening Day. He showcased his ambidextrous talents on April 18, 1950.
Hall of Famer Frank Robinson and Ken Griffey Jr. share the record for most career home runs on the first day of the season, with 8 homers each.
Hall of Famer Tom Seaver has started the most Opening Day games in MLB history—11 for the Mets, 3 for the Reds and 2 for the White Sox for a grand total of 16.
There has only been1 no-hitter in Opening Day history. Cleveland pitcher Bob Feller threw it against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park on April 16, 1940.
For those wondering about the amount of ball-park food consumed on Opening Day, the average stadium will sell…
7,600 Hot Dogs
2,600 Orders of Nachos
1,800 Slices of Pizza
1,600 Sausage and Pepper Sandwiches
1,100 Soft Pretzels
700 Orders of Chicken Tenders
600 Hamburgers
1,500 Bottles of Water
3,000 Gallons of Soda
For those wondering about the amount of ball-park food consumed on Opening Day, the average stadium will sell…
7,600 Hot Dogs
2,600 Orders of Nachos
1,800 Slices of Pizza
1,600 Sausage and Pepper Sandwiches
1,100 Soft Pretzels
700 Orders of Chicken Tenders
600 Hamburgers
1,500 Bottles of Water
3,000 Gallons of Soda