Chickens on the Run: Game 3: Rangers @ Mariners

It's Jason Jennings vs. Carlos Silva. What the Rangers are hoping to get this season is a 2006 Jennings and not the other four years of production in the last five years. Is that a likely expectation to hope for what amounts to be a fluke year? Well, let's just say that Jennings pitched in Colorado for almost his entire career, up until last year, and kept his ERA in the low 5's. That may sound downright awful until you realize that the ball travels extremely far in thin air. So what would amount to a routine fly ball in any other stadium amounts to a homerun at Coors field. Colorado is not the place to go to revive a pitching career. And that would have to be an understatement if I ever heard one. And to add insult to injury, Jennings only year out of the mile high area was in a hurtful season in Houston, about a whole mile less in elavation. And his results were a bit shaken. He still posted a high ERA (in the mid 6's), actually the highest of his career.

So, the Rangers got him realitively cheap.

A huge factor in tonight's game is this - the injury report.

Milton Bradley: LF - Apr 1: Day-To-Day - Knee Injury
Michael Young: SS - Apr 1: Day-To-Day - FLU
Hank Blalock: 3B - Apr 1: Day-To-Day - FLU

So, that is the injury report. ESPN also lists Ian Kinsler, but then doesn't say why he is on the list... one of those errors, I guess. Bradley should be fine to play, since this is the injury he has been recovering from all Spring.

The line list Seattle as the favorite (60% to 40%). I don't know how they come up with that garbage, but that's what it said. I guess home field is worth a 20% swing? Carlos Silva isn't that much off from Jennings when you look at Silva's history.

Jennings stats for Spring 2008: 1.54 ERA, going 0-1 over four starts (only 11 2/3 innings, though), giving up six hits, three runs, but only two earned. Silva, on the other hand, went 0-2 this spring and posted an atrosious 9.21 ERA over four starts. He threw 14 2/3 inngs, giving up a nice 28 hits and 16 runs, but only 15 earned. ONLY. And let's be honest, the Spring normally carries over into the regular season. I certainly hope that it does tonight. The only question is: do Young and Hank play tonight or sit out with the sickies? Hank played last night with a 104 degree fever. Hopefully that knocked down his temp a little and he can play.