Could have something to do with his .398 OBP vs LHP in 2004.

What makes him very much less than a logical candidate is his poor plate discipline. You want your leadoff hitter to be able to get on base. Even batting .321 coming into this game, his OBP was just .329.

And how about that - the only LH in the lineup comes through.

That's for sure. Spectacular glove work by Hudson, McDonald and Hillenbrand to complement the best of tonight's vaunted pitching matchups.

Don't mean to sound pedantic, but I think it was a hanging slider. After getting two consecutive called strikes on the inner half of the plate, I think Johnson wanted to throw the slider low and away. Instead he threw a frisbee down the middle. I'm not sure Hinske pulls a Johnson fastball over the right field fence.

Don't forget Randy Johnson!

WOW. That was a wicked pitch to K A-Rod. I think I'm having as much fun as I've had this season watching a baseball game.

Mulder vs Hudson - both got roughed up in the first inning, and it's 4-4 in the 4th.

Greinke vs Sabathia - CC did his part, but not Zack. Indians are up 6-0 in the 6th.

Maddux vs Clemens - it's early, Cubs are up 2-1 in the 3rd.

Still to come - Webb vs Peavy.

I think if Doc needs to throw 130 pitches to finish this one, that's what we're going to see.

I agree. Batista can be the closer for everyone else. Let Halladay finish this one off himself.

Can just one be one too many Molinas? Perish the thought.

Brian Jordan's 2 run HR tied it for the Braves, for a 2 run shot by Pujols now has the Cards up 6-4.

I don't think so. A healthy Halladay is/will be replacing all those injured Halladay/Justin Miller starts. Having an Ace like Halladay stops those losing streaks and keeps the winning ones going. It is priceless.

Absolutely not. I say Doc starts the inning while Batista warms up. Doc has never shown fatigue after 100 pitches before. I can remember several games where he has pitched 115-125 pitches and still had great velocity/command. If things start to go wrong, go ahead and bring in Batista, but I don't want to see Shoey in this game.

Also working in Doc's favour is the quick pace of the game. We're just now hitting the two hour mark. If this had taken forty minutes longer than it has, maybe you go to the pen. But not yet.

I don't expect to see the Unit drill the Dude next time around. RJ understands the effect he has on left-handed hitters - a foul ball is often a moral victory - and isn't likely to hold it against him.

I'm not sure about this. Yes, Halladay pitched a ton of innings, but the reason he was able to do so is because he is so efficient. He only threw like 100 pitches each game. Remember that game where he went 10 and threw 99 pitches?

And, sorry if this lacks professionalism, but:

WOOO-HOOO!

Game of the year so far. At least, out of all the games I've seen.

Don't exaggerate. Nobody ever said that.

And save for the homerun swing, Hinske was a deer in the headlights all night. Full credit to Hinske for the tater, but it was Johnson's own mistake that led to it.

NO COMPLAINING AFTER THE SHUTOUT VICTORY OVER THE YANKEES.

Hear hear! Welcome aboard, adore 50000. First post mojo, you picked a good night. And a little respect for TorontoDan, who called Rios' two hits.

            W   L   GB
Minnesota  14   8   --
Toronto    13  11   2
Seattle    12  11   2.5
Detroit    11  10   2.5
Texas      12  12   3
Boston     11  11   3
Oakland    11  12   3.5
Cleveland   9  13   5
Yankees     9  14   5.5

Yes, it is double. Wells is at .198. Hillenbrand has .396.