After the All-Star break left us with two days without a single MLB game last week, we return to our normal schedule. Fans in Britain will have to stay up late on Monday and Tuesday to catch some live MLB action, but there is a decent amount of choice during the evening for the rest of the week. As always, all times are listed in BST.
Monday – No early games to start the week. The Phillies take on the Dodgers, with Jamie Moyer facing Brad Penny at 3.10 in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Here’s hoping the Beckhams don’t turn up! Elsewhere, fans who prefer slug-fests to pitching duels might want to catch the Blue Jays’ game against the Yankees (00.05). Josh Towers and Kei Igawa take the mound in a pitching featherweight duel (although Towers had a good outing in his previous start to be fair).
Tuesday – Again, no early games, but there are some quality pitching match-ups to enjoy for any one who doesn’t have to work on Wednesday. Roy Halladay and Andy Pettitte continue the Blue Jays/Yankees series (00.05), Bartolo Colon and the Angels are in Tampa Bay taking on James Shields (00.10), El Duque and the Mets face NL All-Star Jake Peavy and the Padres (03.05), while Jeremy Guthrie faces the Mariners and Felix Hernandez (03.05). Another game to look out for is St Louis against Florida (00.05). Dutch pitcher Rick Vanden Hurk will be taking the mound for the Marlins.
Wednesday – Seven games to choose from during the British evening. The White Sox and the Indians start their AL Central clash at 17.05, with Mark Buehrle and Jake Westbrook on the mound. Aaron Harang faces Tim Hudson and the Braves at 18.05, while Matt Cain and Carlos Zambrano battle it out at Wrigley field (19.20). The other early games involve the Rockies and the Pirates (17.35), the Astros and the Nationals (18.05), the Phillies and the Dodgers (20.10), and the Rangers against the A’s (20.35).
Thursday – Five early games. Kelvim Escobar looks to continue his great season (seemingly going unnoticed by many) against Andy Sonnanstine and the D-Rays at 17.10. At the Metrodome, Jeremy Bonderman and the Tigers take on Scott Baker and the Twins (18.10). The Giants and the Cubs wrap up their series at Wrigley, with Matt Morris and Ted Lilly taking the mound from 19.20. Chien-Ming Wang starts for the Yankees against Dustin McGowan and the Blue Jays (18.05). Livan Hernandez takes the mound for the D-Backs against the Brewers, with Yovani Gallardo likely to start if Ben Sheets has to miss out through injury (19.05). Later in the night, Dice-K makes a start at Fenway (00.05), C.C. Sabathia faces the Rangers (01.35), and there are two exciting pitching match-ups with Cole Hamels facing Chris Young (03.05) and Tom Glavine facing Derek Lowe (03.10).
Friday – One early game from Wrigley, with the D-Backs rolling into Chicago at 19.20. Two sinker-ball pitchers take the mound, with reigning NL Cy Young winner Brandon Webb facing Jason Marquis
