Game thread: Gerrit Cole faces Twins

Here's your open thread for today's action. There seemed to be demand for it yesterday, so let's give this a shot. A few notes:

-P- Yesterday, the Bucs defeated the Blue Jays 1-0. Casey Sadler started and pitched three scoreless innings, followed by Stolmy Pimentel, Bobby LaFromboise, John Holdzkom, Jeremy Bleich, Deolis Guerra and Josh Wall.

-P- This afternoon, Gerrit Cole will start against Ricky Nolasco and the Twins. The game will be on 93.7 The Fan. Early today, the Bucs already won a B game (also against Minnesota, but at Pirate City), with Mark Melancon pitching a scoreless inning. Vance Worley also pitched three scoreless, striking out four.

-P- Pedro Alvarez has been out lately with what sounds like a minor elbow injury.

-P- In case you're curious, I wrote about the Reds' offseason in a piece published Saturday at MLBTR. Conclusion: They've still got a good core, but they seem a little bit directionless, and if anyone gets hurt, they've got problems.