The Bull of the Wisconsin Woods returns to the mound today at 2. Follow the jump for today's pitching matchup, lineup and more!
Yovani Gallardo (3.84 ERA, 3.02 FIP in 2010) gets the start today for the first time since being announced as the Brewers' Opening Day starter. He's starting on short rest today to fit into the slot in the rotation, so his outing might be relatively brief.
Gallardo was excellent in tough conditions on Monday, throwing three shutout innings while 30+ mph winds howled out to right field. He allowed just two hits in the outing, and one of them was a pop up that should have been caught. He also struck out five and didn't walk anyone.
Gallardo has never faced the A's in the regular season, and this is the first time he'll face them this spring.
The A's are playing a split squad doubleheader today and Gio Gonzalez, who dominated the Brewers on Sunday, is pitching the other half. Instead, the Brewers will face Tyson Ross (5.49 ERA, 4.30 FIP in 2010). Ross spent most of last season pitching out of the bullpen for the A's: In 26 appearances (including two starts) he struck out 7.32 and walked 4.58 batters per nine over 39.1 innings.
Ross works in the low 90's and throws his slider over 26% of the time, according to FanGraphs. The slider is pretty good, worth +2.31 runs per 100 pitches in 2010. He'll throw those two pitches nearly exclusively.
Ross has, of course, never faced the Brewers in the regular season. He is, however, carrying a perfect ERA through 6.2 innings of work this spring, with no walks and six strikeouts.
Here's today's lineup:
Rickie Weeks 2B
Craig Counsell SS
Mark Kotsay RF
Casey McGehee 3B
Erick Almonte 1B
Jeremy Reed LF
Brandon Boggs CF
Wil Nieves C
Yovani Gallardo P
The forecast for Phoenix today is sunny and hot. Game time temps should be in the low to mid 80's. Winds shouldn't be a significant factor.
There's no TV or radio for today's game, but it is a free webcast at Brewers.com.
Enjoy the game!