Tonight we're following along with Dodgers-Cubs on a live blog/chat. Feel free to join in using the comments.

 

7:55	Welcome all, thanks for following along

11:15

With the Dodgers and Cubs less than an hour away from first pitch, here are a few things to consider:

- Eric Milton (1-0. 3.00) makes his third start of the year for the Dodgers. Milton won his first game in nearly three years his last time out, limiting the Rockies to a single run over five innings. He didn't pitch at all last season because of Tommy John surgery. He was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque on May 14.

- Sean Marshall (3-3, 3.70) toes the rubber for the Cubs. He pitched five innings in a rain-shortened win over the the Pirates on Wednesday, allowing one run while striking out six. He's lowered his ERA from 4.15 to 3.70 over his last four starts. Left-handed batters are just 6-for-35 (.171) off the 26-year-old southpaw.

- Alfonso Soriano has a .133 batting average over his last 11 games that has seen his batting average dip to .246, but he is 6-for-12 (no homers) in his career vs. Milton.

- Juan Pierre is batting .394 since taking over left field for the suspended Manny Ramirez on May 7. The Dodgers are 13-9 in that time.

- The Cubs have gone deep in eight straight games.

- Reed Johnson has three homers and six RBI in over his last six games after failing to homer in the season's first 24 games.

- The Dodgers were shut out for the first time this season on Saturday. They have yet to lose three in a row this season.

- After winning the National League's Rookie of the Year award in 2008, Geovany Soto has struggled this season with a .215/.338/.273 line. He has homered just once in 121 at-bats.

- Without the presence of Ramirez, Andre Ethier's batting average has dropped from .327 to .257. He was among the league leaders in RBI when the month started, but he has just three RBI in his last 20 games.

- The injury-riddled Cubs have won four of their last five games to bring their record to 15-12 this month.

I made the trek up the East Coast this weekend to see the Mets' road spring training lineup take on Josh Johnson and the Marlins. With the exception of Fernando Martinez's first hit, double and RBI, there wasn't much to crow about as the Marlins won the game handily 7-3. However, Saturday marked my first chance to catch a game at Citi Field. So besides telling you that braving the line at Shake Shack is worth it, here are a couple initial impressions which may or may not be original thoughts.

1) The Fanwalk is cool: In 2007, fans had an opportunity to purchase engraved bricks with a customized message that would sit on the plaza outside the entrance to the Jackie Robinson Rotunda. I had no idea how cool this would be until I saw it and now I regret not getting one. For a stadium that is largely a building at this point and not a "Mets" building, the brick walkway puts a real personal touch on the history of the franchise and their fans.

2) The Jackie Robinson Rotunda is underwhelming: I'm all for Jackie Robinson. Aside from Michael Jordan, he was my favorite person to write a biography about in elementary school. I completely understand the impact he has had on our game, but the grandiosity of the rotunda was lost on me. Do you really want the first thing people see when they walk in a Mets' ballpark to be a person in a Dodgers' uniform? Where's the Mark Carreon Rotunda? Give me some history! The whole thing left me feeling cold.

3) Lack of foul territory: Sure there are the obvious quirks of the fences, cut-outs and all, and The Pepsi Porch that hangs over the playing field, which is where I sat, but there is considerably less foul territory here as opposed to Shea Stadium. It's one thing to see it on television, but it's hard to feel the gravity of it until seeing it in person. For all the talk about this being a pitchers' park, opposing batters will certainly get a few extra swings here. I suppose it counter-balances in some weird way. As for down the lines, I can't wait to see a "Bartman moment" in this place. It's bound to happen. You know, probably on October 4th against the Astros with the Phillies and Mets deadlocked in first place.

Before moving on to the top 50 pitchers for 2010-14, here's a look at the pitchers who missed the cut:

The prospects: Trevor Cahill, Neftali Feliz, Brett Anderson, Chris Tillman, Jarrod Parker, Brett Cecil

Cahill was the very last cut from the list. That he's fanned just 19 in 48 2/3 innings as a major leaguer did hurt his cause a bit, but he has plenty of stuff and he really should be in Double-A right now.

The relievers: Carlos Marmol, Joakim Soria, Jonathan Papelbon, Francisco Rodriguez, Ryan Madson

That's how I'd rank the next five behind Jonathan Broxton, the only reliever to make the top 50.

The tumblers: Fausto Carmona, Ricky Nolasco, Ervin Santana, Chien-Ming Wang, Scott Kazmir

All five of these guys would have made the top 50 at the start of the year. Carmona has failed to bounce back from a very rough 2008, but at least his problem seems to be between his ears. Santana is trying to pitch with a torn elbow ligament, and Tommy John surgery still looks like a real possibility, while Kazmir's stuff has been on an obvious decline for a year now. ... Of the five, Nolasco's stock has dropped the least. He's healthy, and his problems this season were due in part to bad luck and bad defense.

The up and comers: Edwin Jackson, John Lannan, Wandy Rodriguez, Phil Hughes, Kevin Slowey

I'm not completely sold on Jackson or Rodriguez or both would be in the top 50. Jackson, though, has always had the stuff, and Rodriguez's command has come a long way. ... Lannan lags behind when it comes to stuff, but he gets an awful lot of grounders and he should prove to be pretty durable.

The veterans: Mark Buehrle, Aaron Cook, Gil Meche, Roy Oswalt, Aaron Harang

Buehrle would have made the top 50 if there were any indication that he was motivated to pitch into his mid-30s. The 30-year-old left-hander has indicated that he could all it quits after 2011. ... The 32-year-old Oswalt is another who might hang 'em up prior to 2014.

Over the next five days, I'm going to rank my top 50 pitchers for 2010-2014. Money is not an issue. Durability is. The rankings are not done with fantasy value in mind, though I hope keeper leaguers will still find it useful. The included ages are as of Apr. 1, 2010.

50. A.J. Burnett (33 - Yankees) - Burnett's stuff is about as good as ever, so it doesn't figure that he'll succumb to age at any point during the five-year, $82.5 million contract he received from the Yankees over the winter. It's more of a matter of whether he'll provide four mostly healthy seasons in the five-year span. Burnett has made 30 starts twice and pitched 200 innings three times in his major league career. That he hasn't had any problems of late gets him a spot here, if only barely. He's rather overrated even when healthy.

49. Derek Holland (23 - Rangers) - In making his major league debut after just one Triple-A start last month, Holland brought with him perhaps the best fastball for a lefty starter seen since CC Sabathia entered the league. The rest of his arsenal isn't quite as strong as Clayton Kershaw's and he'll have a tougher road than most young pitchers while pitching for the Rangers, but he could be a long-term No. 2.

48. Joe Saunders (28 - Angels) - Saunders has the worst strikeout rate of anyone on the list, but he's won 23 games and posted a 3.35 ERA in 40 starts since the beginning of last season. He has a perfectly legitimate 88-92 mph fastball, and his changeup has made him plenty effective against righties. Remarkably, he hasn't had a single injury of significance since missing 2003 with a torn rotator cuff that originally figured to derail his career.

47. Jonathan Broxton (25 - Dodgers) - The lone reliever on the list. Carlos Marmol and Jonathan Papelbon were close, and Joakim Soria probably would have made it if not for his shoulder problems. Broxton, who has a 1.17 ERA and a .092 average against so far this year, gets the edge because of his durability.

46. Chris Carpenter (34 - Cardinals) - Carpenter was the NL's most effective pitcher in a three-year span from 2004-06. He's pitched a total of 44 1/3 innings since, but he's back now and looking about as good as ever. He makes for one of the toughest calls in the top 50. Given that he turns 35 next April, there's little chance that five more healthy seasons are on the way. However, he's such a terrific pitcher that two or three 32-start seasons could justify his presence.

45. James Shields (28 - Rays) - Shields has more than survived in a tough division for pitchers, going 35-28 with a 3.92 ERA in 95 starts since debuting in 2006. He has great command, and his excellent changeup makes him tough on lefties. I don't see him possessing any further upside, but durability is a big point in his favor. He's never had any arm problems, and that he rarely has to deal with long innings should help him stay healthy.

44. Daisuke Matsuzaka (29 - Red Sox) - Leading the AL in walks didn't prevent Matsuzaka from finishing third in ERA last season. Dice-K has struck out 8.5 batters per nine innings and limited hitters to a .236 average as a major leaguer. He has quite a bit more mileage on his arm than the typical pitcher his age, so it does remain to be seen whether he'll be able to keep it going in his 30s. He'll likely he held under 170 innings again this year after missing time with shoulder fatigue.

43. Max Scherzer (25 - Diamondbacks) - Some projected Scherzer as a closer after he was selected 11th overall in the 2006 draft, but he's a definite top-of-the-rotation talent. It's concerns about whether his arm will hold up in the rotation that keep him out of the top 30 here. Scherzer battled shoulder problems last year and gave the Diamondbacks another scare when he had some soreness there over the winter. If it looks like he's not going to be able to make 30 starts per year, the team may yet have to turn him into a closer.

42. Ben Sheets (31 - FA) - Sheets' reputation for getting hurt doesn't quite match up with the facts: he's made 34 starts three times and he made 31 last year. 2009 will be just the second season of his nine-year career in which he hasn't made at least 22 starts, and 2003 was the last year in which he wasn't clearly an above average starter while on the mound. The torn flexor tendon that's causing him to miss most of this year shouldn't cause any problems in 2010 and beyond, and all of the time off will likely do his shoulder some good.

41. Clay Buchholz (25 - Red Sox) - After a lost year in 2008, Buchholz has recaptured the form that helped him throw a no-hitter in his second major league start on Sept. 1, 2007. He's currently 2-1 with a 1.60 ERA, 23 H and 42/12 K/BB in 39 1/3 IP for Triple-A Pawtucket. Buchholz has three above average major league pitches in his low-90s fastball, curve and changeup. He lacks maturity and he's too easily rattled for someone who should be a future ace, but like Burnett, he could be a big-time asset while still never truly pitching up to his potential.

40. Tim Hudson (34 - Braves) - A sharp decline in his first two years in the NL suggested that Hudson was done as a top starter, but he bounced back to go 27-17 with a 3.27 ERA in 2007 and the first two-thirds of 2008. Tommy John surgery has kept him out since, but he's made steady progress and he could return to help the Braves in August.

39. Edinson Volquez (26 - Reds) - Volquez dials it up to 95 mph and has one of the best fastball-changeup combinations in baseball. Command woes have made him a six-inning pitcher for the most part, but he did finished eighth in the NL in ERA and tied for second in strikeouts last year. Unfortunately, he's gone from walking 4.3 batters per nine innings then to 5.7 this year. Especially with Dusty Baker at the helm, he's going to have to become more efficient if he expects to survive.

38. Ubaldo Jimenez (26 - Rockies) - Unlike Volquez, Jimenez seems to be going in the right direction. He walked 4.7 batters per nine innings last year, but he's improved to 4.1 this year and he's been especially good lately. In five starts this month, he has a 2.38 ERA and a 29/7 K/BB ratio. Jimenez throws 93-97 mph and has a quality slider for a second pitch. He had some significant arm injuries early on in his pro career, but nothing since 2004.

37. Madison Bumgarner (20 - Giants) - The Giants have another potential ace on the way, and this one is a left-hander. Bumgarner is 6-1 with a 1.06 ERA and a 44/8 K/BB ratio in 42 1/3 innings between Single-A San Jose and Double-A Connecticut. The 10th overall pick in the 2007 draft throws 93-96 mph and shows a pretty good slider. His changeup is a work in progress. His only other flaw -- the fact that he's a big flyball pitcher -- won't be a major issue in AT&T Park. He could debut this summer if the Giants stay in contention.

36. Tommy Hanson (23 - Braves) - After coming in at 5:1 in the Arizona Fall League, Hanson has had to settle for just about 2.5 strikeouts for every hit allowed in Triple-A this year. He's 3-3 with a 1.51 ERA, 30 H and 73/15 K/BB in 53 2/3 innings. His ability to work deep into games remains in question, and it also remains to be seen whether major league hitters will be as baffled by his curve as minor leaguers. Fortunately, his slider has gotten a lot better, giving him another legitimate weapon when he can't throw his curve for strikes. I still think he's more of a future No. 2 than a true ace.

35. Cliff Lee (31 - Indians) - I would have had a more difficult time putting the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner in such a top 50 over the winter, but since an ugly spring and a rough first two starts, he's settled right back in as one of the league's best pitchers. In his last eight turns, he has a 1.86 ERA and a 39/9 K/BB ratio.

34. Joba Chamberlain (24 - Yankees) - Chamberlain, on the other hand, would have been in the top 20 on this list three months ago. He was plenty impressive in his 12 starts last year, going 3-1 with a 2.76 ERA and a 74/25 K/BB ratio in 65 1/3 innings. However, it seems like he's been hesitant to cut loose this year. In trying to pace himself, he hasn't been any good at all early in starts. I certainly don't think it's time to move him back to the pen. However, it would be something to consider for 2010 if he fails to progress. I think we will see improvement as the year goes on.

33. Jair Jurrjens (24 - Braves) - With little more than an average strikeout rate, middling walk and groundball rates and an unremarkable 90-93 mph fastball, Jurrjens shouldn't be this good. Yet he finished with a 3.68 ERA as a 22-year-old last season and he's at 2.07 through his first 10 starts of 2009. White it looks like he's pitching over his head, there's also no reason to think he'll fall apart anytime soon. His changeup and slider are both above average offerings, and he does a great job of keeping hitters guessing. The only thing he still needs to prove is that he can throw 200-220 innings a year. He wore down at the end of 2008, but, again, he was just 22.

32. Derek Lowe (36 - Braves) - Yes, I do believe the Braves are in pretty good shape going forward, though it's not a given that Hudson will be back in 2010. Lowe is the oldest pitcher in the top 50, but he's a good bet to keep racking up 200-inning seasons; not once in his 13 seasons has he been on the disabled list. That fact lifts him over some of the more talented pitchers behind him.

31. Carlos Zambrano (28 - Cubs) - Zambrano is still a week away from his 28th birthday, but I wonder if his best days aren't already behind him. He had some shoulder problems last year, and his velocity has declined a bit through the years. I'd feel better about things if he can maintain the stronger strikeout rate he's displayed so far this year. He went from 8.8 K/9 IP in 2006 to 7.4 in 2007 and 6.2 in 2008. He's back up to 8.4 right now, but it's only been seven starts. 

30. Chris Volstad (23 - Marlins) - With his strikeout rate well up and his walk rate down, Volstad's about 20 spots higher now than he would have been at the start of the year. If not for a fluky home run rate -- he's given up 11 in 61 innings, even though he's still getting an above average number of grounders -- his ERA could be quite a bit lower than 3.69. Apparently, he used up all of his luck last year, when he had a 2.88 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. His WHIP is 1.13 this season.

29. Matt Garza (25 - Rays) - Garza's ERA hasn't changed a bit since 2007 -- it's been right at 3.70 -- but his average against has gone from .294 to .245 to .200 so far this season. A true power pitcher, Garza alternates fastballs, sliders and curves. That he's been trying to avoid contact has resulted in higher pitch counts, but he appears built to last. The only arm problem he's had as a pro was some nerve irritation early on in 2008.

28. John Danks (24 - White Sox) - Danks was quietly one of the AL's best pitchers as a 23-year-old last season, going 12-9 with a 3.32 ERA and 159 strikeouts in 195 innings. His ERA is up this year, but so is his strikeout rate and he's been effective in six of his nine starts. Along with a quality fastball for a left-hander, he has a very good changeup that has made him more effective against righties than lefties over the course of his career. He's yet to establish himself as a 210-220 inning guy, but he has time on his side.

27. Adam Wainwright (28 - Cardinals) - Since moving from the pen to the rotation to begin 2007, Wainwright has gone 30-17 with a 3.45 ERA in 62 starts. I don't think he has much additional upside, but with one of the NL's best curveballs at his disposal, he could keep this up for several more years.

26. Jon Lester (26 - Red Sox) - It's been an awfully odd year for Lester. Even when he was a below average major league starter in 2006 and 2007, he seemed to have a special knack for pitching himself out of jams, allowing him to maintain respectable ERAs despite poor WHIPs. In 10 starts this year, he's already had five innings in which the opponents have scored at least four runs, leaving him with a 6.07 ERA. He's fanned 62 in 59 1/3 innings and he's throwing harder than ever before, so it's not a matter of stuff. He'll probably turn it around before long.

25. Francisco Liriano (26 - Twins) - Liriano's velocity has come back only a bit in his second year back from Tommy John surgery, leaving him down about three mph from where he was during his brilliant rookie season in 2006. I don't doubt that he can and will be an effective pitcher while throwing 91 mph, but he's still working to adapt, as evidenced by his current 6.42 ERA. My biggest concern is that more injuries are on the way. He battled shoulder problems several times before blowing out his elbow.

24. Matt Cain (25 - Giants) - Only his ERA suggests that Cain is having a breakthrough season, as his WHIP, average against and K/BB ratio are all weaker than usual. Still, this is right about where I would have put him at the start of the year. Even though he's working on his fourth full season as a major leaguer, he's younger than Tim Lincecum. He doesn't give up many homers, and he's always maintained a strong strikeout rate. The big knock against him is that he's no better now than he was when he entered the league.

23. Jordan Zimmermann (23 - Nationals) - Great command of a legitimate 93-mph fastball and a four-pitch arsenal should make Zimmermann a quality No. 2 starter for a long time. He's not making a big case for Rookie of the Year honors yet with a 5.71 ERA in seven starts, but he's struck out 39 and walked just 12 in 41 innings.

22. John Lackey (31 - Angels) - Back-to-back years kicked off by elbow woes have taken a toll on Lackey's ranking here. He was just about as effective as usual in his 24 starts after returning in 2008, and he seems to have recovered his velocity already after missing the first 5 ½ weeks of 2009. However, it remains to be seen whether he'll be able to reemerge as a workhorse after pitching so much from 2002-07.

21. Stephen Strasburg (21 - San Diego St.) - Strasburg will be taken by the Nationals with the first overall pick in the 2009 draft. He's very likely ready for the majors now, but the smart move would be to tell him to take the rest of this year off and get ready for 2010. The 20-year-old right-hander has gone 13-0 with a 1.24 ERA and a 180/19 K/BB ratio in 102 innings for the Aztecs. He can throw in the high-90s, his slider will be one of the best in baseball and his changeup shows promise. It was hard to resist putting him in the top 15.

20. Josh Beckett (29 - Red Sox) - Having made 99 starts since the beginning of 2006, Beckett has been a rather durable pitcher as a member of the Red Sox. However, he only pitched like an ace in 2007, though that season nearly got him a Cy Young Award. His ERA jumped to 4.03 last year, and he's at 4.60 though 10 starts this season. Part of it is bad defense, but he is walking more batters that usual. All in all, he's a pretty borderline choice for the top 20. However, it's quite possible that he'll be better in his 30s than he's been in his 20s. For someone who debuted in the majors at 21, he doesn't have a ton of mileage on his arm.

19. Johnny Cueto (24 - Reds) - Cueto opened the year as the Reds' No. 4 starter, but he's the ace now. He's lasted at least seven innings in seven straight starts and is 4-2 with a 2.37 ERA. Cueto has very good command of a 91-94 mph fastball, and right-handers hardly seem to have a chance against his slider. A better changeup would be nice, but he's plenty good as is.

18. Jake Peavy (28 - Padres) - It's not at all fair to call Peavy a Petco creation, but he has a 3.84 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP outside of San Diego in his career. Also, there are serious concerns about how his shoulder is going to hold up. His stuff hasn't gotten any worse through the years, but he's often battled minor problems and it is likely that he's currently pitching with damage in the shoulder. He's not going to have five more healthy seasons in a row.

17. Justin Verlander (27 - Tigers) - Possessing one of the game's very best fastballs didn't make Verlander an effective pitcher in 2008 or in the first month of 2009, but since opening the year 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in four starts, he's allowed four runs and struck out 60 batters in 42 1/3 innings. All of the inconsistency makes him awfully tough to rank, but he was a clear top-10 starter going into 2008 and he's looking better than ever right now.

16. Josh Johnson (26 - Marlins) - Johnson was viewed as a future No. 3 starter during his days as a prospect, but his fastball has gotten better every year and he's now one of baseball's hardest-throwing starters. He never missed a beat after returning from Tommy John surgery, and he's pitching like a Cy Young candidate this year, though his defense and lack of run support will probably prove too much to overcome in the end.

15. Erik Bedard (31 - Mariners) - Back with a vengeance after a 2008 season ruined by a cyst in his shoulder, Bedard has gone 3-2 with a 2.48 ERA to date in his final season before free agency. He hasn't lost anything off his fastball or curve, which is one of the league's best breaking balls, but he really could use a 200-inning season before he puts himself up for bid. His career high is 196 1/3 innings, established in 2006.

14. Clayton Kershaw (22 - Dodgers) - While I broke the list down by tens, when I really see here is, well, let's call it a Fantastic Fourteen. Kershaw is closer to the top 10 than he is to Bedard at No. 15. That he is the last pitcher in the group is mostly a result of me being worried about his durability. There are no obvious red flags, but Kershaw is quite wild and he can rack up big pitch counts in a hurry if he's not being watched extremely closely. The Dodges are still being very careful with him now -- he's topped 100 pitches only three times this year, with a high of 112 in an outing in which he was dominant -- but they will take the kid gloves off at some point within the next couple of years.

13. Dan Haren (29 - Diamondbacks) - Haren seems well on his way to making 33 starts and throwing at least 215 innings for a fifth straight season. He has the least impressive fastball of anyone in the top 20, but his splitter is an excellent strikeout pitch and his command continues to improve. With Brandon Webb sidelined, Haren should start to be recognized as one of the game's very best pitchers.

12. CC Sabathia (29 - Yankees) - The 512 innings he threw between 2007 and 2008 haven't taken a major toll yet. Sabathia's strikeout rate is down in his first year with the Yankees, but it has bounced back lately and he's still throwing as hard as he has at any point in the last half-dozen years. If he does have an off year at some point, it will likely be blamed on his ever increasing belly. He likely will have to commit to getting into better shape one of these years, but worse athletes have remained excellent pitchers into their mid-30s.

11. Rick Porcello (21 - Tigers) - A fine sinkerballer at age 20, Porcello could yet develop into a 160-180 strikeout guy if need be. He's talented enough to succeed in any number of ways. With the Tigers keeping him on fairly strict pitch counts, he's just trying to pound his fastball at the knees and get grounders right now. If success with that method proves fleeting, he can go with more high fastballs and curves out of the zone. He's a terrific bet for the long term even if he goes on to stumble some this year.

10. David Price (24 - Rays) - The first overall pick in the 2007 draft burst onto the scene in the second half of September last season and turned into one of the Rays' most trusted relievers in the postseason. He just this week returned to the majors, as the Rays weren't willing to carry him from the start of the year and put him on 200-inning pace. Dealing with a severely limited pitch count, he's been quite inconsistent this year. However, he has a dominant mid-90s fastball-slider combination when he's on. If his changeup comes along with experience, he'll be one of the game's best pitchers. Even if it doesn't, he should be very good anyway.

9. Yovani Gallardo (24 - Brewers) - Gallardo has proven to be a remarkably solid pitcher at a very young age. The question is whether he has the same kind of ceiling as the other pitchers in the top 14. He throws 90-93 mph and relies a great deal on a curve that gets him a lot of his strikeouts. It's going to be tough for him to take his game up another notch without a better changeup. Of course, if he just stays at this level, he'll be in the top 10 in the NL in ERA every year. Missing most of 2008 with a knee injury may pay off in the long run, as it saved significant wear and tear on his arm in what was his age-22 season. I think he has a better chance of staying healthy than most of the other under-25 pitchers here.

8. Chad Billingsley (25 - Dodgers) - The Dodgers have jerked Billingsley around a bit in his young career, but it's never stopped him from progressing. His ERA has dropped from 3.80 as a rookie to 3.31 in 2007 to 3.14 last year and 2.82 so far this season. Billingsley possesses the build of a workhorse, plenty of movement on his fastball and a strikeout curve. His command is below average, but all of the other pieces are in place for him to serve as a top starter for a long time.

7. Zack Greinke (26 - Royals) - With a 90-mph fastball, excellent command and a strong array of pitches, Greinke was compared to Greg Maddux after being drafted sixth overall in 2002. That didn't work out, but there's no shame in being the new Bret Saberhagen instead. Greinke typically works at 92-95 mph these days, and he can throw strikes with the best of him. 2009 may well go down as his career year, but unlike Saberhagen, he won't be asked to throw 260 innings. He'll have a much better chance of holding up for the long haul.

6. Cole Hamels (26 - Phillies) - Health is the big question with Hamels, who pitched the Phillies to a championship last year. It took him 262 innings to get it done, though, and he developed some elbow soreness this spring that caused the Phillies to go slowly with him. He also missed time in 2006 with a strained shoulder and 2007 with a strained elbow. Before arriving in the majors, he missed much of 2004 with elbow woes and had back problems. Last year was proof that he can stay healthy and perform as a Cy Young candidate for a full year. Now he just needs to do it again a few more times.

5. Brandon Webb (30 - Diamondbacks) - Obviously, this isn't a good time to be ranking Webb. The injury that's sidelined him since the beginning of April has been labeled bursitis, which suggests that there will be no long-term ramifications. However, there's clearly something more going on in his shoulder. We now know that there were significant concerns raised over a physical Webb had last summer and that he was examined by Dr. James Andrews over the winter. If it were just bursitis, Webb would be two spots higher here. If I knew of a tear somewhere in his shoulder, he'd be at least 10 spots lower.

4. Felix Hernandez (23 - Mariners) - Even in his fourth season, King Felix still hasn't become the pitcher everyone expected. But it's well worth nothing that he's actually eight months younger than Price and he already has 44 victories to his credit. He's become much more of a pitcher in the way he battles hitters, especially when he's working with men on base. That has more to do with his velocity drop than any arm problems. Of course, he still throws quite a bit harder than most and both his slider and curve are legitimate strikeout pitches. If he continues to stay healthy -- and the Mariners have done a fine job of taking care of him -- it's only a matter of time until he puts it all together and becomes a Cy Young candidate.

3. Roy Halladay (32 - Blue Jays) - When Halladay was limited to 21 starts in 2004 and 19 in 2005 and then spent much of 2006 pitching through forearm issues, it looked like he might not remain an ace into his 30s. However, after a disappointing season in 2007, he suddenly reemerged as the AL's best pitcher in 2008. Sure, Cliff Lee won the Cy Young, but Halladay, who had to deal with a tougher schedule, would have been at least as good of a choice. He's been just as good so far this year, and it doesn't look like he'll begin to fade again anytime soon.

2. Johan Santana (31 - Mets) - Santana averaged 230 innings per year from 2004-08, so it's of no surprise that his velocity has declined a bit. Still, he's quite likely baseball's best pitcher anyway, and he'll probably remain outstanding even if he's working at 88-90 mph by the time he's 35. That's because he has outstanding command and one of baseball's very best changeups.

1. Tim Lincecum (25 - Giants) - It'll be years before I stop cringing every time the Giants let Lincecum approach 130 pitches. However, there is the real possibility that the kid is simply a freak. He has a delivery unlike anyone else, he has a very modest build and he doesn't ice his arm, yet he's never had any problems. For what it's worth, his velocity is down a bit this year, though it's bounced back a bit recently. The results have been outstanding since two poor outings to begin the year. Hopefully, he'll rack up 230-inning seasons for years without incident.

- After nine straight losses on the road, the Blue Jays finally return home tonight. Unfortunately, they'll be facing the Red Sox, who started off Toronto's losing streak with a three-game sweep at Fenway last week. The winning pitcher in the first game of that series, Tim Wakefield, will be back on the mound for this one. He allowed one run over eight innings in his previous start against the Jays, and he's 6-2 with a 3.99 ERA for the season, making him Boston's most effective pitcher so far. The Blue Jays will give Casey Janssen his second start of the year. Janssen, making his way back from shoulder surgery, allowed three runs over six innings in a loss to Atlanta six days ago.

- The surging Yankees will start a series tonight in Cleveland, where the Indians just pulled off a four-game sweep of the Rays. Andy Pettitte gets the nod for the Yankees against one of only two AL teams he's under .500 against in his career (Seattle being the other). The Indians will go to Cliff Lee, who beat the Yankees on April 16 for one of his two victories so far this season. Aside from that game, which Cleveland won 10-2, the Indians have totaled 19 runs in Lee's nine starts.

Game of the Night

St. Louis vs. San Francisco - A pair of five-game winners will square off in San Francisco, with Joel Pineiro going against Matt Cain. Pineiro is inducing grounders at a league-best rate, but he's lost four of his last five starts anyway, partly due to poor run support. He has a shutout and five other quality starts in nine trips to the mound this season. Cain has won his last two outings and has seven quality starts to his credit. However, he is 0-1 with a 9.58 ERA in two career starts against the Cardinals. Albert Pujols has a homer and a double in five career at-bats against him.

The White Sox were able to get Carlos Quentin at a discount from the Diamondbacks last offseason because he was coming off shoulder surgery, but he's had different injury problems since arriving in Chicago.

Gambling on Quentin's health paid huge dividends for the White Sox last season, as he hit .288/.394/.571 with 36 homers and 100 RBIs in 130 games to finish fifth in the AL MVP balloting. However, he missed the final month of the season and the playoffs with a broken wrist.

Quentin got off to a strong start this year, hitting .253/.374/.587 with eight homers in April to show that his wrist was no longer an issue. Unfortunately, he began having problems with his left foot once the calendar flipped to May and has been in and out of the lineup for the past three weeks while going 11-for-56 (.196) with zero homers.

After saying last week that he planned to simply play through the pain, Quentin felt a "pop" in his foot while running the bases Monday and hasn't played since. He left the team to have his foot examined by doctors back in Chicago and the White Sox placed Quentin on the disabled list this afternoon.

Chicago has scored the second-fewest runs in the league and replacing Quentin's big bat with the likes of Scott Podsednik and DeWayne Wise certainly won't help matters. His injury, plantar fasciitis, is more common among NBA players and often leads to long stretches on the sidelines because playing through the pain typically proves extremely difficult.

Last week general manager Kenny Williams made an unsuccessful run at Jake Peavy, but with the White Sox now sitting in fourth place at 21-25 and facing life without Quentin it may be time for the reigning AL Central champions to shift gears with an eye toward 2010 and beyond.

* Gordon Beckham played primarily shortstop at Double-A, but moved to third base for his final game there and stayed at the hot corner last night in his Triple-A debut.

I've been assuming that the White Sox view Beckham as the long-term answer at second base and they've gotten the AL's third-worst production from the position, but perhaps they're more interested in ditching third baseman Josh Fields, who's hitting .229/.293/.314 with poor defense.

* Chris Davis is striking out more often than any player in baseball history and he's hitting just .203/.259/.456 in the process, so the Rangers are running out of patience. Davis is batting .368 with 12 homers in 87 at-bats when he makes contact, but he's whiffed in an amazing 41.7 percent of his plate appearances.

* Cecil Cooper's job might be safe for a while longer, but the Denver Post reports that Rockies manager Clint Hurdle is "on borrowed time."

* In case you haven't heard, the Matt Wieters Era begins tonight in Baltimore. Based on the hype, he should have the Orioles in first place by Monday.

* After being part of umpire Todd Tichenor's ejection-fest yesterday afternoon, Red Sox manager Terry Francona "was examined by emergency medical technicans to check on his blood pressure."

According to the Dallas Morning News, earlier this week a female Rangers fan wearing a "Yankees Suck" t-shirt was asked to either turn it inside out or leave the ballpark ... in Texas.

But wait, it gets better. Kristen Knapp-Webb was at the Rangers-Yankees game celebrating her 19th wedding anniversary and her husband Walter had given her the shirt as an anniversary present. All of which puts her in contention for "Wife of the Year" honors.

Anyway, security approached the happy couple before the game and informed them that they considered her shirt "profane." I'm assuming that they meant the "suck" part and not the "Yankees" part, but you never know. Here's what Rangers spokesperson John Blake said afterward:

That particular phrase is one we've received a lot of complaints about. That kind of thing is offensive to a lot of people, especially if you have young children and that kind of thing. And I think that's why we have that policy.

As someone who has this t-shirt in his closet--here's proof, if you don't believe me--I'm perhaps somewhat biased on this topic, but the notion of protecting "young children" from seeing the word "suck" on a piece of clothing seems fairly ridiculous. After all, the Morning News has no problem putting "Yankees Suck" in the story's headline, and presumably more children read the newspaper than a woman's t-shirt.

Plus, raising children to hate the Yankees is part of what makes America great.

Astros owner Drayton McLane, on speculation that manager Cecil Cooper is on the verge of being fired:

Firing the manager is not in the cards. He's only been the manager for a year and a half. I think that's somewhat premature. When you're real good that doesn't last forever. When you're playing real bad that doesn't last forever. That's not in the cards. We've got to work through this.

McLane's comments are particularly interesting because earlier this week general manager Ed Wade refused to "play the vote of confidence game" when asked if Cooper's job status was in question. Here's exactly what Wade said at the time:

I've been a GM now for 10 years. I don't get into votes of confidence. I don't think there's any value to it. In 10 years as GM, I never asked for votes of confidence, and I've never given votes of confidence. It's just media speak and doesn't lend anything to the situation.

Wade is right that a "vote of confidence" is basically meaningless, except the fact that it's even an issue tends to signal that a manager is very close to being fired. Obviously the owner of a team saying that "firing the manager is not in the cards" is a pretty strong indication that Cooper's job is safe in the short term, but the Astros are in last place at 18-27 and the clubhouse appears to be unraveling.

According to Jose Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle, Cooper "has lost a great portion of his clubhouse's support and with some players even their respect." Ortiz reports that earlier this week one Astros player told him: "It's going to be Coop or me soon. Just watch."

Diamondbacks ace Brandon Webb has been sidelined with a strained shoulder muscle since struggling in his Opening Day start, but played catch from 120 feet earlier this week and said yesterday that he's still hoping to return before the All-Star break.

Before he can think about rejoining Arizona's rotation Webb will have to stretch his arm out to throwing from 150 feet, progress to pitching off a mound, throw several bullpen sessions, and then complete a minor-league rehab assignment.

In other words, he's still facing a long road back. Or as Webb put it: "You can't just start going into games right away. You've got to build your arm up."

Arizona has filled Webb's spot in the rotation with Yusmeiro Petit, Billy Buckner, and Bryan Augenstein, who've combined to post a 6.80 ERA while the team goes 2-7 in nine starts. If you assume for a moment that a healthy Webb would have reversed those figures with the team going 7-2 in his starts, the Diamondbacks could be sitting at 26-22 right now and Bob Melvin would probably still be managing.

Unfortunately instead they're holding the fourth-worst record in the league at 21-27 and even if Webb is able to return by the All-Star break the Diamondbacks will likely be completely out of the NL West picture (they're already 12.5 games back of the Dodgers) and may also be trailing by double-digit games in Wild Card race (they're 6.0 games behind the Brewers right now).

The other day Yahoo!'s Gordon Edes was reporting that the Red Sox were scouting Jeff Francoeur. I kind of doubt it actually, given that Francoeur is pretty much the polar opposite of what Theo Epstein, Bill James and the rest of that gang in Boston looks for in a player. My guess: if Red Sox people were in Atlanta, they were advance scouting the Blue Jays.

But let's say it's true, and the Sox truly are interested in Failcouer. What should the Braves expect back for him? If I were Frank Wren I'd probably be happy with anything north of a kick to the groin, and I'd consider the kick to the groin for a good long while if it meant ditching Frenchy. But I'm not Frank Wren and I have a hard time handicapping trades. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is stumped too, so they threw the question out to their readers. Among the actual responses they received were "A bag of beans"; "20 bats and they pay his ticket out of town"; "A ham sandwich to be named later"; "air"; and "Ortiz." I'm not sure whether that last one is a bigger insult to Big Papi or Francoeur. That ham sandwich offer seems pretty sweet though.

While this is an obviously unscientific survey, it does have some value: it challenges the assumption the Braves seem to have that local-boy Francoeur is some uber-popular guy in Atlanta who must be given more latitude to stink than other players are. He's not, and even the message board posters of the AJC -- where the worst of the Francoeur apologists tend to reside -- have turned on him.

What that means, I think, is that unless that offer of the ham sandwich -- or even the kick to the groin -- becomes available, Frank Wren has the cover to designate baseball's biggest out machine for assignment.

Brett Myers underwent an MRI exam on his hip Thursday and received bad news as it showed fraying and a possible tear in the labrum. He hasn't been placed on the disabled list as of this writing, but that seems inevitable after Myers revealed that "it sounds like surgery is almost 100 percent from the first opinion" and "they told me that my hip is f***ed up."

General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. indicated that the Phillies would be open to a trade to fill Myers' spot in the rotation if he's indeed done for the season, but also made it clear that they're more likely to replace him internally with Kyle Kendrick, Carlos Carrasco, Andrew Carpenter, or Antonio Bastardo. Carrasco is the team's top pitching prospect, but he's 0-6 with a 5.81 ERA in nine starts at Triple-A.

While the Phillies hope that a second opinion can provide better news for Myers, here are some other notes from around baseball ...

* Orioles right-hander David Hernandez made his MLB debut Thursday by giving up one run over 5.2 innings for a win against Detroit. Hernandez has never been highly touted as a prospect because of bad command, as he walked four batters per nine innings coming into this season. However, his strikeout rates have been fantastic and he showed signs of improved control prior to being called up.

Hernandez had a 2.93 ERA and 60/13 K/BB ratio in 43 innings spread over eight starts at Triple-A, giving him 595 strikeouts in 516 career innings. If the improved control is legit Hernandez becomes a very intriguing prospect, but he walked four of 25 batters Thursday while needing 108 pitches to record 17 outs. He's clearly worth keeping an eye on and the 24-year-old could have value in AL-only spots.

* Chris Ray missed all of last season following Tommy John surgery, but seemed to be doing reasonably well through his first 13 appearances this season, posting a 13/5 K/BB ratio in 11.1 innings. Things began to unravel for him last week and Ray allowed nine runs on seven hits and six walks over a four-inning stretch that earned him a trip back to the minors Thursday.

While his post-surgery struggles are discouraging, Ray still missed a fair amount of bats by whiffing 21 percent of his batters faced compared to 22 percent prior to going under the knife. His average fastball was clocked at 94.1 miles per hour after being 94.2, 94.8, and 94.7 from 2005-2007, so aside from command issues his stuff still seems plenty good. In other words, don't give up on him quite yet.

* Travis Hafner's comeback from a right shoulder injury was delayed for 3-4 days by rib soreness, but he resumed his minor-league rehab assignment Thursday at Triple-A by going 1-for-3 with a double and a walk. Assuming that he can avoid a setback while playing 2-3 more games at Columbus over the weekend, Hafner is on track to come off the disabled list Monday.

AL Quick Hits: After missing three weeks with a hamstring strain, Jorge Posada is slated to come off the disabled list Friday ... Victor Martinez drove in two runs Thursday, but his OPS dipped below 1.000 for the first time since the third game of the season ... Jason Varitek hit two homers off Anthony Swarzak before being ejected from Thursday's game, giving him 10 long balls in 133 at-bats after going deep 13 times in 423 at-bats last season ... Clete Thomas led off Thursday, with usual leadoff man Curtis Granderson batting fifth for Detroit ... Luke Scott had a pair of homers Thursday, making him 4-for-8 with three homers and seven RBIs in two games since coming off the shelf ... Josh Beckett whiffed eight over seven innings of one-run ball Thursday ... Jeremy Bonderman (shoulder) is scheduled to make another minor-league rehab start Sunday at Triple-A ... Jacoby Ellsbury went 0-for-3 to snap his 22-game hitting streak Thursday.

NL Quick Hits: Carlos Zambrano has been suspended six games for his amazing implosion Wednesday, so he'll miss one start ... Houston manager Cecil Cooper doesn't seem long for the job after general manager Ed Wade declined to give him a vote of confidence Thursday ... Dan Haren threw seven innings of two-run ball Thursday, slicing his ERA to 2.54 with a sparkling 71/9 K/BB ratio ... Anibal Sanchez (shoulder) tossed three scoreless innings in a minor-league rehab start Thursday at Single-A ... Randy Wolf keeps thriving in his second go-around with the Dodgers, holding the Cubs to one run in seven innings Thursday ... Jonathan Broxton was unavailable after throwing 38 pitches the previous game, so Ramon Troncoso picked up his third save Thursday ... Tom Glavine (shoulder) topped out in the mid-80s Thursday, but still had five shutout innings in a rehab start at Triple-A ... Xavier Paul (staph infection) has been released from the hospital, but is likely still several weeks from seeing game action.

* It wasn't quite as eventful as Carlos Zambrano's implosion yesterday, but this afternoon's Twins-Red Sox game just saw home-plate umpire Todd Tichenor eject both starting catchers and both managers in the same inning, about five minutes apart.

Mike Redmond and Ron Gardenire were tossed in the top of the seventh after a borderline call at the plate went against the Twins and in the bottom of the frame Jason Varitek and Terry Francona were thrown out when Josh Beckett didn't like the strike zone. Beckett avoided Tichenor's wrath despite screaming obscenities from the mound by smartly turning his back and walking toward second base while Varitek took up the fight.

* The White Sox may not be ready to call up Gordon Beckham yet, but they did promote him to Triple-A yesterday. Beckham's final line at Double-A: .299/.366/.497 with four homers, 17 doubles, and a 24/14 K/BB ratio in 38 games.

* It took 180 plate appearances, but Bobby Abreu finally hit his first homer of the season. Now that Abreu and David Ortiz are both off the schneid, Russell Martin is the closest thing to a power hitter among the 17 guys who're still homerless with at least 100 trips to the plate.

* Now that David Price is in the Rays' rotation and Matt Wieters is due to arrive in Baltimore tomorrow, can Braves right-hander Tommy Hanson be very far behind?

* Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com projects the first 20 picks of this year's draft, which is less than two weeks away. You'll be absolutely shocked who he has as the No. 1 pick.

The "candlesticks scene" from Bull Durham has forever taken most of the mystique out of players holding conferences on the mound, but the "exchange" that A.J. Burnett and Kevin Cash had yesterday was still pretty amusing.

Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News explains:

At one point in the fifth inning, Burnett threw a couple of bad pitches that made Cash believe he needed a little break. Cash didn't have any words of wisdom for his pitcher, so he made his way to the mound, picked up the rosin bag, dropped it back to the ground and headed back to the plate.

"I didn't say anything, I just let him catch his breath for a minute," Cash said. "He had just thrown a couple of pitches off the plate, and I didn't have anything to say, but I walked out there and bought some time, let him settle back in."

Burnett was very confused. "I thought he was going to say something, then he didn't," Burnett said. "It was one of those moments. I was expecting something, but there was nothing. Maybe he just wanted to stir it up a little. I was like, 'Good talk, Cash.'"

Okay, let's get two! Go get 'em!

Last week Milton Bradley complained that his various run-ins with umpires have caused the men in blue to widen their strike zone when he's at the plate:

Unfortunately, I just think it's a lot of "Oh, you did this to my colleague," or "We're going to get him any time we can. As soon as he gets two strikes, we're going to call whatever and see what he does. Let's try to ruin Milton Bradley." It's just unfortunate. But I'm going to come out on top. I always do.

What am I supposed to do? You lead the American League in OPS, and two years in the top three in the league in on-base percentage. All of a sudden now, I come to Chicago and I can't see the ball no more? I don't know a strike from a ball? I don't think I'm doing anything wrong. There's a lot involved, and it's a lot of politics where there's nothing you can do about it.

The beauty of being a baseball fan in 2009 is that smart people have access to the data necessary to actually investigate those types of claims. Dave Allen of Baseball Analysts did just that, breaking down MLB.com's PitchF/X data to see whether Bradley's strike zone has indeed expanded recently.

His lengthy analysis is definitely worth reading, if only for the cool-looking charts of the strike zone, but the short version is that "there is no statistical difference between Bradley's zone this year and his zone in 2007 and 2008."

It took 2,060 games, but Chipper Jones finally had the first Golden Sombrero of his 16-year career last night, striking out four times against Randy Johnson and the Giants.

Prior to last night there had been a total of 1,279 instances of a player striking out at least four times in a game since Jones joined the Braves' lineup full time in 1995.

But wait, there's more (blame the wonder that is Baseball-Reference.com).

Those 1,279 instances came from 577 different players, 14 of whom had double-digit games with at least four strikeouts before Jones even had one. Jim Thome led the double-digit crew with 16 four-strikeout games, followed by Sammy Sosa with 15.

Jones watched 28 different Braves teammates strike out four or more times in a game before joining the club himself, led by Andruw Jones with 10. Jeff Francoeur and Kelly Johnson were among those 28 and according to Jones "they shook my hand and welcomed me in."