It's looking like Kershaw and Ryu in Australia

*** UPDATE ***

It's official.  Don Mattingly will give the ball to Clayton Kershaw in the first game, then to Hyun-Jin Ryu in the next.  Should be fun.

***

First Zack Greinke complained about having no fun in Australia.  Then he left a start after four pitches due to a strained calf muscle.

Complaining + injury = no trip Down Under.

While Don Mattingly has not made it official, it's sure looking like Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu will get the nod in the two-game set against the Diamondbacks in Australia.  Greinke probably won't even make the trip, which is just fine with him, I'm sure.

When you're scouting the Diamondbacks, you immediately start with the mighty Paul Goldschmidt, who had a monster 2013 by hitting .302 with 36 homers and 125 RBI.  He's also a right-handed hitter, so naturally you wish the right-handed Greinke could match up with him instead of the two southpaws.

Granted, Kershaw and Ryu are not your typical lefties, so it's probably all a wash in the end.

Because of the quirkiness of this trip, both teams are allowed to carry 30 roster members with them in case of injury to the top 25.  Again, nothing is confirmed, but it's looking like Dan Haren will go on the trip, along with Matt "Ball Four" Magill to pitch in an exhibition game against Team Australia two days before the opener.