Baseball finally returns today as the Mets take on the Braves in Queens to start the 2012 season. Let’s just jump right into what is going on today, rather than focus on the season as a whole, which is usually what today is for. For the Mets the major story line of the day is the return of Johan Santana who will be pitching in the majors for the first time since September 2010. Back in 2010, Santana pitched 199.0 innings with a record of 11-9 and a 2.98 ERA. In 2010 Johan faced the Braves 4 times totaling 26.0 innings of work with a 2-1 record and a 2.42 ERA. Fast forward to this past Spring, Johan pitched 18.1 innings with an ERA of 3.44. The Braves the following career numbers against Johan Santana:
Matt Diaz 16-32, 3 2B, HR (I forgot how much Diaz can hit off of Santana)
McCann 8-29, 2B, 3 HR
Prado 3-20, 2B
Uggla 1-19, HR, 10 K
Bourn 5-11
On the other side of the diamond, the Mets bats will be taking on Tommy Hanson. Hanson was 11-7 with a 3.60 ERA last season over 130.0 IP. He faced the Mets in two games last season where he pitched 8.1 innings and allowed 10 ER. However back in 2010, Hanson pitched 23.2 innings against the Mets over 4 games with a 2.32 ERA, so take those two lines for what they are worth. Anyway, the Mets have put up the following numbers on Tommy:
Wright 2-18, 2 2B (Yikes)
Thole 7-16, 2B, HR
Davis 2-10, 2B
Bay 3-9, HR
Duda 3-6, HR
Murphy 3-5, 2B
Let’s Go Mets!
(Don’t forget to check 213 Miles From Shea’s 2012 Mets Preview!)
