Giants vs. Yankees in New York is quite a way to kick things off.
San Francisco will begin the 2023 season with three games in the Bronx, and we now know who will take the hill for the Orange and Black.
Unsurprisingly, it will be aces Logan Webb and Gerrit Cole squaring off in the opener. This is the second season in a row that Webb will be the club’s Opening Day starter. It’s always intriguing when the Giants’ face Cole, considering he’s married to Brandon Crawford’s sister, Amy.
Game two on Saturday will be Alex Cobb vs. Clarke Schmidt. Cobb had been dealing with knee soreness in Scottsdale, but passed his final test with a back field outing in Arizona. Schmidt has never faced the Giants.
In the series finale, a new face will take the mound for San Francisco. Ross Stripling, formally of the Blue Jays and Dodgers, will face Yankees right hander Domingo German. San Francisco is going with three right-handed starters against a very right-handed Yankees lineup.
The decision to go with Stripling in the third game over Anthony DeSclafani probably has to do with the amount that Stripling has faced the Yankees over the years. Hopefully he can figure out how to right the ship after a disappointing spring in which he posted a 7.43 ERA in six games. Stripling was excellent last season, posting a 3.01 ERA in 32 games pitched.
