The A's opened against the Bosox last nite. Well actually it was game #3 of the series but it was our "opener." This year celebrates 40 years of Oakland A's baseball with little hope of seeing 50 as plans are to move the team to Fremont. Opening Ceremonies honored Dick Williams, newly inducted into the HOF and first pitch(es) were thrown out by Joe Rudi, Sal Bando, Steinie and Hendu. Where is Canseco when we need him? The A's lineup of no-namers went up against the dazzling Red Sox but the A's didn't seem particularly intimidated. Blanton pitched well, despite sometimes wobbly fielding support and the game was a close 2-1 Boston win. Unfortunatley the A's bats were silenced except Cust's solo homer.My seat from the Westside club provided a good vantage point for watching Daisuke pitch. He threw a lot of balls along with his impossible to hit strikes. Still, he walked virtually none. Matsuzaka has an oddly rounded body, no chiseled angles anywhere. He's considered a "botchan" in Japan and he certainly lives up to that, starting with his chapatsu (dyed brown) hair and dyed-to-match eyebrows and beard. Still, he pitched better than Blanton and won with the help of Okajima (a bit shakey) and Papelbon (lights out). Looking forward to listening to the game this afternoon - GO A's!!
