The Battle of Bako commences one final time, with the Royals looking to secure their first victory of the season against Baltimore. To date, the Orioles are 6-0 against the Royals, which would be impressive until you realize the Orioles can beat the system simply because they can sign every great free agent away from the small-market teams, like they did with Paul Bako.
While skeptics would suggest there is nothing to be gained by sending out the brave leader of men Gil Meche (9-12, 3.70 ERA) out to the mound anymore, those skeptics would also fail to recognize the vital importance of this game. They fail to recognize that large swaths of unclaimed territory lie in the 1077 miles which seperate KC and Baltimore, swaths we should be fight for like rabid feral pigs.
The Orioles counter with Daniel Cabrera (9-17, 5.51 ERA), a pitcher whose pitiably small salary ($1.8 m) gives us no reason to believe that he is a real man. He is no Meche.
ps- Perhaps understandably, the manager of the week in Baltimore has elected to sit Bako tonight against the Royals. This game doesn't need anymore tension.