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And1pg2 · 07-15-2009, 11:06 PM

Astros start season at home against Cubs
Houston Chronicle

A very anticipated start to the 2009 season is almost upon us. Not only will it be Mike Woods' first game as Houston General Manager but his first as manager as well. The Astros will begin the season at home in a series against the heated rival Chicago Cubs. When asked about the Cubs this is what Woods had to say "Well, I won't go out and see I dis-like the Cubs, but it's nice to play a rival right out of the gates, kind of gets our feet wet early, and with a good series we can see ourselves in first early. Seeing ourselves up there can bring confidence, when you have the confidence, anything can happen. I'm glad we start the season against mostly NL Central teams, in fact 16 of 19 games in April are against the NL Central, with the exception being a series against LA. We get to see what every team has early on, that can do wonders if we can get out of the gate hot, but we could shoot ourselves in the foot if we stumble out of the gate. It's all going to depend on how well we pitch and how well we defend. Our hitting will be there with Berkman, Lee, Pence, and Miggy. We just have to find ways to stop the opponent from scoring at will."

Roy Oswalt is going to be on the mound opening day for the Stros as he has been the Astros best pitcher for years now. Oswalt is coming off a second half last season where he started 13 games with an era of 2.42 so hopefully he can start off where he left off last season. Since he joined the big leagues in 2001, Oswalt leads all Major League pitchers with 129 wins. In that time, he ranks third in ERA and is seventh in winning percentage. His .668 overall career winning percentage ranks first in Astros history, and his 3.13 ERA also is the best in club history among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched. Oswalt has had double-digit win totals in all eight of his Major League seasons, including 20-win seasons in 2004 and 2005. Among players who began their careers after 1957, Oswalt is the sixth-fastest to 100 in terms of appearances among pitchers. Oswalt had this to say about his opening day start "It's an honor to go out there and pitch on opening day, always one of the biggest thrills of the season for me, the only thing I hope for is I don't go out there and pitch horribly. Hopefully all goes well and we start the season off on the right note. The Cubs have some very good hitters, so I'll have to be on my game from the get go."

Series Pitching Matchups:
Game One: Roy Oswalt (N/A) Vs. Rich Harden (N/A)
Game Two: Mike Hampton (N/A) Vs. Ryan Dempster (N/A)
Game Three Wandy Rodriguez (N/A) Vs. Carlos Zambrano (N/A)

07-15-2009, 11:06 PM	#3
And1pg2 All Star Reserve Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 979	Astros start season at home against Cubs Houston Chronicle A very anticipated start to the 2009 season is almost upon us. Not only will it be Mike Woods' first game as Houston General Manager but his first as manager as well. The Astros will begin the season at home in a series against the heated rival Chicago Cubs. When asked about the Cubs this is what Woods had to say "Well, I won't go out and see I dis-like the Cubs, but it's nice to play a rival right out of the gates, kind of gets our feet wet early, and with a good series we can see ourselves in first early. Seeing ourselves up there can bring confidence, when you have the confidence, anything can happen. I'm glad we start the season against mostly NL Central teams, in fact 16 of 19 games in April are against the NL Central, with the exception being a series against LA. We get to see what every team has early on, that can do wonders if we can get out of the gate hot, but we could shoot ourselves in the foot if we stumble out of the gate. It's all going to depend on how well we pitch and how well we defend. Our hitting will be there with Berkman, Lee, Pence, and Miggy. We just have to find ways to stop the opponent from scoring at will." Roy Oswalt is going to be on the mound opening day for the Stros as he has been the Astros best pitcher for years now. Oswalt is coming off a second half last season where he started 13 games with an era of 2.42 so hopefully he can start off where he left off last season. Since he joined the big leagues in 2001, Oswalt leads all Major League pitchers with 129 wins. In that time, he ranks third in ERA and is seventh in winning percentage. His .668 overall career winning percentage ranks first in Astros history, and his 3.13 ERA also is the best in club history among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched. Oswalt has had double-digit win totals in all eight of his Major League seasons, including 20-win seasons in 2004 and 2005. Among players who began their careers after 1957, Oswalt is the sixth-fastest to 100 in terms of appearances among pitchers. Oswalt had this to say about his opening day start "It's an honor to go out there and pitch on opening day, always one of the biggest thrills of the season for me, the only thing I hope for is I don't go out there and pitch horribly. Hopefully all goes well and we start the season off on the right note. The Cubs have some very good hitters, so I'll have to be on my game from the get go." Series Pitching Matchups: Game One: Roy Oswalt (N/A) Vs. Rich Harden (N/A) Game Two: Mike Hampton (N/A) Vs. Ryan Dempster (N/A) Game Three Wandy Rodriguez (N/A) Vs. Carlos Zambrano (N/A)