Clayton Kershaw is making his third consecutive Opening Day start while Matt Cain makes his first. He takes over from Tim Lincecum, who has started each opener since 2009. According to Baseball Reference, Lincecum's four straight starts on Opening Day is the longest streak since Marichal from 1964-1969. Matt Cain will begin his own streak today in Los Angeles.
Kershaw has led the National League in ERA and WHIP both of the last two seasons, on his way to one Cy Young Award and one runner-up finish. His appearances on the mound for the season openers have resulted in a 2-0 record. In fact he has not allowed a single run his those two starts, although last year was cut short by injury.
Speaking of injury, Dodgers' star-infielder Hanley Ramirez will be unavailable after injuring his thumb at the World Baseball Classic. In addition to Ramirez, Chad Billingsley, Ted Lilly and Scott Elbert have all been placed on the disabled list.
The Giants believe their roster is capable of heading back to the Fall Classic.
"We like our chances," Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford said. "We've got our guys back. It's pretty much the same team we had last year. What we accomplished last year is our goal this year."
The Dodgers share that sentiment about their team, but are being cautiously optimistic to prevent overconfidence. Clayton Kershaw had this to say:
"We can talk about it until we're blue in the face, but until we start winning some games and be in first place for the majority of the season, there's really not much we can say about it."
He added that the Giants should be considered the favorites until proven otherwise. Manager Don Mattingly also chimed in on the subject:
“This is a good club on paper, and we know it. But we also know that doesn't necessarily mean it will turn out well unless you go out and make it happen.”
Today will be the first day anybody is able to witness a payroll valued at $241 million. The Giants are by no means a small-market team; however their $150 million payroll seems like monopoly money to the kind of cash Los Angeles has thrown around recently. Unfortunately for the Dodgers, the game is not won with or on paper.
First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m.
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