Tonight at 10:05 p.m. ET, the Cleveland Indians and Oakland Athletics open up their 2014 seasons in 2014 Opening Day action live from the O.co Coliseum in Oakland. The game can be live streamed here. Cleveland fans can hear all of the action on WTAM 1120 while Oakland fans can do the same on 95.7 The Game.
Justin Masterson will take the ball for the Indians after posting a 14-10 record with a 3.45 ERA last season while Sonny Gray will take the hill for the Athletics following a 2013 campaign that saw him go 5-3 with a 2.67 ERA.
Oakland enters the season in search of its third straight American League West crown while Cleveland is coming off of a season where it earned its first postseason berth since 2007 before losing in the Wild-Card game to the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Indians are confident they can make the playoffs again due to their versatile offense.
"It's probably a manager's dream to have so much versatility," said Tribe first baseman Nick Swisher via MLB.com. "We've got a lineup where we all feel confident in each other and know each other's ability. We've got average guys, power guys, speed guys, and one through nine, guys are going to give you a quality at-bat."
Swisher, a former member of the A's, hit .246 last season with 22 homers and 63 RBI.
Swisher will be a big part of the Indians lineup, expected to bat after leadoff man Asdrubal Cabrera and help set the table for Jason Kipnis and Carolos Santana.
Oakland manager Bob Melvin talked about the importance of matching up.
"We match up at the start of games," the skipper told MLB.com. "We match up in-game. ... We have a few guys that play every day, and the other spots we try to match up and get our best lineup we can at the start of a game. But just because you don't start a game doesn't mean you might not be an impact player in a game."
The Athletics boast a heart of the order that includes Jed Lowrie, Yoenis Cespedes and Brandon Moss.
The Indians and Athletics kick off their 2014 campaigns when they take the field tonight at the O.co Coliseum in Oakland.
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