Are we setting up Aaron Harang to be the opening day starter?

The San Diego Padres recently delayed Aaron Harang to make his recent start against the Cincinnati Reds in order to align him up with the regular season.

The opening day starter against the St Louis Cardinals has yet to be announced and last season, Bud Black waited till the last week of the Spring to announce Jon Garland as the opening day starter. Could the recent rescheduling of Harang be a hint on where we plan on him to start out the season?

If Harang were to pitch every 5th game of the Spring, it lines him up perfectly to be the opening day starter on March 31 against the Cardinals. There are a couple of off days from now and opening day, so we will see how that affects the schedule for the pitchers.

Harang has been an opening day starter for the last 5 seasons with the Cincinnati Reds and has the most experience in the Padres rotation. He has dealt with the extra adrenaline and nerves of opening day.

To be honest, I am more interested in seeing who pitches the home opener against the Gnats, mainly because I would love to see Mat Latos dealing against them! Especially with the extra built up drama of the “I Hate SF!” balls that Latos signed in the off-season.