We’re doing this. It’s really here. Opening Day in late-July is the latest adjustment we’ll have to make during this supremely unnatural year. Whatever happens today, please do not forget that the Astros cheated their way to the franchise’s only World Series championship.
Marco Gonzales will make his second straight Opening Day start and seventh career start against the Astros, countered by two-time Cy Young winner Justin Verlander. The Mariners look positively overmatched, but so did they in their home opener in 2019 against the Red Sox. This is, cruelly, still a monstrous Houston lineup even without the added help of nefarious banging schemes. Make sure to keep those tin hats on today, folks. The Astros have had a lot of time to come up with some new way to bend the rules.
For the Mariners, the most notable elements of this lineup are Kyle Lewis playing center field, Evan White hitting all the way up in the second spot, and J.P. Crawford swinging eighth. This also marks the MLB debuts for White and José Marmolejos. White’s family even sent along some photos and a note that they’ll be napping during the day in preparation for staying up late to watch the game.
We only get 60 of these bad boys, let’s make the most of ‘em.
Lineups
First Pitch: 6:10 p.m. PDT
TV: ROOT Sports Northwest, MLB.tv for out-of-market viewers
Radio: 710 ESPN