Play Ball: MLB Opens Season, Pitcher Injures Self Vomiting

Seattle and Oakland did play two regular-season games in Japan last week, but the stateside opening night honors go to Ozzie Guillen’s new-look Miami Marlins. They open their Major League Baseball season tonight against the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals at the Marlins modernistic new ballpark on the site of the old Orange Bowl in Miami.

The Marlins are trying to make a big splash after moving from the Dolphins football stadium in the northern suburbs of Miami. They acquired speedy free agent shortstop Jose Reyes in the offseason to give their lineup a spark.

Marlins ace Josh Johnson gets the opening night pitching assignment against the Cardinals’ Kyle Lohse for new manager Mike Matheny, who takes over for retired skipper Tony La Russa.

It’s the only game on the Major League schedule Wednesday.

In other baseball news as the teams break spring training camps with most teams opening Thursday:

– Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Josh Outman strained his oblique while vomiting due to a bout of food poisoning. He will begin the season on the 15-day disabled list, MLB.com reported.

– In addition to slicing payroll this winter, the New York Mets cut dimensions at Citi Field. The Mets erected a new fence in front of the old wall at the 4-year-old ballpark, lowering the height needed for a home run to 8 feet from as much as 16 and cutting the distance from home plate by up to 12 feet. Citi Field has yielded the fewest homers of any park in the majors.

– Chase Utley will be in Arizona rehabilitating his injured knees when the Phillies open the regular season on Thursday in Pittsburgh. For the second straight year, Utley starts the season on the disabled list. There is no timetable for his return.

– Cleveland Indians pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez is appealing his five-game suspension. The players’ union said in a statement Tuesday that Jimenez has requested an appeal of his ban for intentionally throwing at Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki during a spring training game Sunday. Major League Baseball suspended and fined Jimenez on Monday. Jimenez is scheduled to start Cleveland’s second game of the season Saturday against Toronto.

– The Boston Red Sox will open the season without closer Andrew Bailey, who is scheduled for reconstructive ligament surgery on his right thumb on Wednesday. Manager Bobby Valentine says he thinks Bailey will be out “a while.” Asked if that meant days, weeks or months, Valentine said: “Possibly all of the above.”

– Brandon Inge will start the season on the Detroit Tigers’ 15-day disabled list. The infielder has a strained left groin. Inge, who hit just .197 last season, is trying to make the move from third base to second after Detroit added Prince Fielder at first and moved slugger Miguel Cabrera to third.

– The Washington Nationals have optioned left-hander John Lannan to Triple-A Syracuse and are shifting lefty Ross Detwiler from the bullpen to the starting rotation.

– The Atlanta Braves have signed reliever Chad Durbin to a one-year contract on Tuesday. Durbin went 2-2 with a 5.53 ERA in 56 appearances last year with Cleveland and was one of the last cut from the Nationals’ camp this spring.

– Athletics left-hander Dallas Braden has received an injection of platelet-rich plasma in his strained, surgically repaired throwing shoulder and will not do any baseball activity for three weeks.