April 1st Results: We had a good first day back, going 9-5 with two of our losses being extra inning games. Take a look below for a brief synopses of why each team won.

Winners:

Atlanta at Chicago White Sox: We were correct that Chris Flexen did not stop the bleeding for the White Sox. He got the lost in the 9-0 defeat at the hands of the Braves. We didn’t expect that much of a blowout, but then again the Braves offense is really good, so it isn’t much of a surprise.

Colorado at Chicago Cubs: Much like the White Sox, the Rockies were another team that got shut out. Both teams only managed three hits in the game. Colorado was undone by a big error that allowed three unearned runs to score. That was the difference in the game.

Pittsburgh at Washington: Don’t look now but the Pirates are 5-0! Yes, they haven’t played the toughest of schedules, but 5-0 is still 5-0. They got it done on the backs of their offense, which banged out 15 hits and scored 8 runs. You will win a lot of games if you do that.

Kansas City at Baltimore: It took scoring two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, but a win is a win. Michael Wacha actually pitched better than we thought he would, but the Kansas City bullpen could not hold a lead. Baltimore is a scrappy talented team. They showed it last night.

Texas at Tampa Bay: Another great offensive output from the World Series champs, as the Rangers beat the Rays 9-3. That is 28 runs in four games from Texas, as they look to do what they did last year. Smash other teams into oblivion.

Toronto at Houston: We got this game right, but how it happened we couldn’t have predicted in a million years. The Astros hit five home runs in the 10-0 win. The biggest storyline of the night was Ronel Blanco, Houston’s 30 year old starting pitcher making his eighth career start. All he did was throw the first no-hitter in the big leagues this year. It’s always impressive when a pitcher throws a no-hitter, but to do so against the vaunted Toronto offense is all the more reason to celebrate.

Boston at Oakland: We know Oakland is bad. You know Oakland is bad. But having more errors than hits in a 9-0 shutout? That is embarrassing. The Athletics managed four hits against the Red Sox. But they committed five errors. That is not going to win you very many games.

Cleveland at Seattle: Good starting pitching. Timey hitting. That is what we said yesterday and that is exactly what the Mariners did to get the 5-4 win. They got a 3 run home runs from Dominic Canzone, and Emerson Hancock pitched into the sixth inning. Rinse and repeat.

San Francisco at Los Angeles Dodgers: Dodgers won easily, like we said. Los Angeles got the 8-3 win behind Teoscar Hernandez, who hit a home run in his fourth game in a row. Even the less heralded Dodgers off season acquisitions are hitting the ground running. This is a scary team.

Losers:

Los Angeles Angels at Miami: We didn’t expect Mike Trout to hit two home runs. Then again, Mike Trout is the master of doing the unexpected. With Trout’s two homers, the Angels got the 7-4 win and held the Marlins winless. Things are getting bleak early in Miami.

Cincinnati at Philadelphia: There were two extra inning games yesterday. We lost them both. This was the first one, with the Reds beating the Phillies 6-3 in ten innings. That Phillies bullpen is looking like a mess early in the year. Not good for the city of Brotherly Love.

Detroit at New York Mets: The other extra inning game was this one, and man did the Mets fall apart. The game was scoreless going into the tenth inning, before the Tigers scored 5 runs in the top half of the inning to blow the game open. Another team with bullpen questions, the Mets have Edwin Diaz and not much else.

New York Yankees at Arizona: Maybe the Yankees will go 162-0. We are kidding of course, but they look like a juggernaut in getting the 5-2 win and stretching their record to 5-0. Oh, and they are doing this with Aaron Judge hitting .143 and having no home runs. Juan Soto is carrying them so far and is the MVP of the first week of the season.

St. Louis at San Diego: As soon as we talk crap about the Cardinals starting pitching, Kyle Gibson goes out and spins seven strong innings. Maybe St. Louis knew what they were doing by bringing in all these new pitchers. It sure worked yesterday.