BRADENTON, Fla. -- Jameson Taillon used to pore through the boxscores of exhibition games while he was growing up in the suburbs of Houston, trying to determine who the opening-day starters would be for each of the major-league teams.
Now, he’s one of those pitchers.
Taillon will start March 28 when the Pirates open the season in Cincinnati. Clint Hurdle made the announcement Saturday following his team’s workout at Pirate City, adding that Chris Archer will pitch in the home opener April 1 against the Cardinals at PNC Park. Trevor Williams and Joe Musgrove will pitch the second and third games of the series in Cincinnati.
“It’s a big honor to kick off the season for the boys, try to set the tone,” Taillon said. “Obviously, I care about the body of work but it’s a big honor. Growing up as a fan of baseball, there was a certain (aura) about being the opening-day starter. I always looked forward when teams announced their opening-day starter, always looked forward to who the Astros’ starter was when I was a kid.”
Hurdle said the decision to have Taillon and Archer start the openers was easy.
“I believe Jamo has earned it across the board,” Hurdle said. “Trevor has done some nice things. Archer has done it in the past, which is important because I think there is a certain amount of importance of pitching the home opener, as well. We put two men in play to represent the club and get us out of the blocks well in the first four games of the season.”
Taillon is coming off the best season of his three-year career. He was 14-10 with a 3.20 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 32 starts. Archer, a two-time All-Star, acquired from the Rays last July 31, was 3-3 with a 4.30 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 10 starts following the trade. He made four opening-day starts for Tampa Bay.
Taillon started the home opener last season, which was also the fourth game of the year. He is thrilled to get a higher honor this year.
“I thought there was a chance, but it wasn’t something like where I was staying up at night in the offseason thinking about it or when I pushed hard on that last set,” Taillon said of getting the nod. “It’s something every guy wants and, seriously I mean this, we have a lot of guys who can take the ball on opening day.”
