SURPRISE, Ariz. — If you're the starting pitcher preparing for the Opening Day start for the defending World Series champions, do you get to enjoy it?
That will be right-hander Nathan Eovaldi's predicament when the Texas Rangers host the Chicago Cubs at 6:35 p.m. March 28 at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
With all of the typical Opening Day hoopla, plus the little matter of dropping the 2023 World Series Championship banner before first pitch, Rangers fans will be psyched, the players will be jacked, and Eovaldi, who went 5-0 for the club during their title run last fall, will be in a zone unlikely to really appreciate any of it.
The Rangers officially announced Eovaldi as their Opening Day starter, something manager Bruce Bochy told Eovaldi in December.
He'll face Cubs left-hander Justin Steele. Steele, 28, was 16-5 with a 3.06 ERA in 2023. Steele held the Rangers to a run on four hits and four walks in six innings in early April a year ago.
For the Alvin native, getting the ball for Opening Day is a high honor, especially with a championship to celebrate. He's the second native Texan to start on Opening Day for the Rangers after Alvin native Nolan Ryan. It's his fourth Opening Day start.
"I think it's special just because we won the World Series last year and to be able to come out and have that first one," Eovaldi said. "There's going to be a lot of excitement, a lot of adrenaline. The fans are going to be there. It's the first series, it's opening day, and the opening weekend, baseball is back. So it's very exciting."
But ...
"There are a lot of things that I'll miss, but it's about the game," he said. "It's like the postseason. There's going to be a lot of things going on. But my job is to go out there and be ready for 6:35 ... it's a huge honor to raise the flag there for the fans and let them absorb it and take it all in. It's more for them in my eyes. For me, it's Game 1 and I'm preparing and trying to set the tone for the staff, the team."
Eovaldi's deep investment in the team, whether it's helping tutor young pitchers in the organization or lending his eyes to a teammate's mechanics, is part of why he's earned the Opening Day start for Bochy. Oh, he also went 12-5 with a 3.63 in the regular season and was 5-0 with a 2.95 ERA in six postseason starts.
"It's so hard to quantify what he does," Bochy said. He's out there watching the guys, talking to them, and just bouncing around the clubhouse all day. It's great to have that kind of leadership. For a manager, you appreciate those guys who step in the breach and help you and really become another set of eyes and ears. Guys gravitate to him. He's just got an infectious personality that guys want to be around him."
Eovaldi took Bochy's December message to heart. He has looked very sharp since the start of spring. He'll throw four more innings in the Surprise finale on Saturday ahead of Opening Day.
"He's a guy you have to hold back a little bit," Bochy said. He pitched in the B game, and you would've thought it was the fifth game of the World Series. That's how he approached it, how he backed up bases, everything he did."
Eovaldi feels ready for the Opening Day festivities. He's looked ready since February.
"I feel like I'm firing on all cylinders right now, like everything, mechanically, feels really good," he said.
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