So the Rich Harden era ends, the Chad Gaudin era ends, the Matt Murton era will have to wait until tomorrow (he's not here yet), while the Sean Gallagher era begins Friday against the Angels. A little sad over the losses of Harden and Gaudin? That's why tonight we present...
...THE DUKE!!! Still very much here and leading the league in ERA at 1.96, Justin Duchscherer takes the mound opposed by A's-but-nobody-else-anymore killer Carlos Silva (4-10, 5.85 ERA). Since the start of the 2006 season, Silva has pitched 487 innings and allowed 614 hits. Which, by the way, sucks.
Regardless of whether the A's just got better, worse, or the same for the rest of the 2008 season, one reality remains: The A's are in a great position to sweep this four-game series. The Mariners are the league's lowest run-producing team and the A's have clear advantages in each of the pitching matchups: Duke vs. Silva tonight, Joe Blanton vs. Miguel Batista tomorrow, and Greg Smith vs. R. A. Dickey on Thursday. Let's see if the A's can hang in the race a little while longer...
The lineups, brought to you by the phrase "Enjoy it while you can, Emil":
Ichiro - RF
Bloomquist - SS
Ibañez - LF
Vidro - DH
Beltre - 3B
Reed - CF
Sexson - 1B
Clement - C
Cairo - 2B
R. Sweeney - RF
Ellis - 2B
Cust - DH
E. Brown - LF
Gonzalez - CF
Bankston - 1B
Suzuki - C
Hannahan - 3B
Murphy - SS
