The day didn’t start off so well for Javy Vazquez. On his first pitch of the afternoon, his first live pitch of the spring, Jimmy Rollins took him deep. Perhaps he should compare notes with A.J. Burnett. Thankfully, things went pretty well after that. Vazquez retired the next six hitters he faced, striking out four. Jon Albaladejo pitched a scoreless frame, though not without allowing three hits. David Robertson got a bit roughed up, allowing two runs in .2 innings.
While starter Kyle Kendrick pitched well for the Phillies, old friend Jose Contreras got rocked, allowing six runs in 1.2 innings. Swisher doubled off him twice, and Kevin Russo did once.
Over in Bredenton, Al Aceves was even more impressive, throwing four no-hit innings in a 6-0 victory. Ivan Nova, Jason Hirsh, and Zach McAllister followed with shutout innings of their own, with Nova allowing the only hit of the game.
Now for this evening’s open thread. Basketball is the theme of the evening. The Hawks visit the Knicks, while ESPN will have college hoops.