And in more interesting news, Rockies pitcher (and my bet for this year's NL Cy Young) Ubaldo Jimenez pitched the first no hitter in club history. He's still issuing way too many walks (six in this game alone) but retired the last 15 batters he faced after he started pitching out of the stretch at his pitching coach's suggestion.

I like the 2000 Day in Baseball History at the Skydome. Fans pelted by bits of hot dogs shot from the Hot Dog Blaster. Only 2 months before, Maude Flanders died in tragic Blaster related accident. Will we ever learn?

Can we trade you for some ineffectual sportswriter wannabe in Chitown?

Maybe you missed "Mariners shower Milton Bradley with love" http://content.usatoday.com/communities/…

or "Mariners' Milton Bradley has become the most compelling figure in Seattle sports" http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/la…

Carlos Silva isn't pitching well, he's pitching lucky.

Unfortunately,1 Earned Run without a walk in 13 innings isn't luck. And his next start is against the offensively challenged Mets in their pitcher friendly park. I'm just hoping the bullpen falls apart.

I have a weird theory that average pitchers do well after a crappy season and vice versa. Can't prove it, but after last season's debacle, Silva is looking good.

@ CF - thanks again for game threads; PLEASE keep em up.

Also - please enjoy silva while you can. Talk to me in june about THAT trade....

If you're going to talk about one armed white men in baseball and how obviously terrible they are, perhaps I should remind you of Jim Abbott. Read up. http://www.motivational-keynote-speakers…

C'mon you haters. Silva is the shit. He leads the Cubs in wins with ONE.

Silva may only have 1 win, but he has the #1best WHIP, .62, (Walk+ Hits per Inning) in the league and 3rd best ERA (.69). Getting rid of him was still the M's best option, but no one should dispute after 2 games Silva is pitching great.

Please do shut up about Bradley. Everybody knows what Chicago fans think of him. From his Texas days, we also know that he can be a great player when he doesn't have to deal with hot-head fans and coaches. So far, so good.

As for Silva, he pitched well, but you would be wise to keep your gloating under control. Cinci & Houston don't exactly have powerhouse offenses. Also, maybe you don't know Silva's problems yet because they are not as obvious as Bradley's. Let's just say I would bet my life savings that his annual back problems will flare up by July.

@y'all

I'm very interested in how people reason about baseball stories. When I point out that Milton is doing exactly what one would expect based on most of his recent career, everyone says Just Wait, He'll Get Better. So, the current pattern will not continue. When I point out how Silva is doing the opposite of what one would expect given his recent career, everyone (except Taint) says Just Wait, He'll Get Worse. So his current pattern will not continue. Very interesting symmetrical reasoning.

Also, I was surprised no one is bringing up that Milton was leading the M's in RBI (until Kotchman passed him yesterday). But then I recalled that RBI is a Creationist Stat, and so note that no one is crowing about Milton's .273 OBP.

That Pete Gray story was great.

Jim Abbott pitched in the major leagues with one (functional) arm, and did it quite well. And there was no manpower shortage caused by the war.

African American participation in MLB started to dip right around the time Jim Abbott was pitching. Coincidence? I also blame the Icelandic volcano on Abbott.

Carlos Silva's line after his first four starts in Seattle (April 17, btw):
W-L: 3-0
ERA 2.79
IP/GS: 7.3
H/9: 8.4

Carlos Silva's Mariner totals excluding his first four starts in Seattle:
W-L: 2-18
ERA: 7.53
IP/GS: 5.1
H/9: 13.2

Don't worry, it'll go 'kaput' eventually.

...after which he can blame the Cubs' star Japanese rightfielder for being a self-centered jerk who only cared about getting on base and winning. What a jerk, that rightfielder.

You know as a team I've always liked the Cubs, they have the history, the ballpark, Lou Pinella etc but the problem is the Cubs fans. I can't think of a bigger bunch of whiny fucktards anywhere on the entire face of the earth (teabaggers might be a close second). This whole Milton Bradley situation has just reinforced this belief, two weeks into the season and I'm already sick of you fuckers wagging your finger. SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT MILTON BRADLEY. He isn't on your team anymore.

@12 CF - The thing with baseball, I think more than any other sport, is that veterans' stats are very consistent from year to year. Rarely do you see a guy's numbers jump drastically one way or the other without an injury or, perhaps, a chemical enhancement to explain it.

Bradley is a consistent batter. He's good for around a .370 OBP year in and year out. He doesn't hit many home runs, and never has (something I think Cubs fans never figured out).

Silva has been a bit more inconsistent, but he has been consistently bad. He had two winning seasons in Minnesota in 2003-04. But, even in those years, his batting average against (BAA) was .290 or higher. That is very high. Compare that with Ryan Dempster (.260 career BAA), or Carlos Zambrano (.231 career BAA). Silva's career BAA is a bloated .303!

Granted, Dempster and Zambrano have been in the NL, so let's compare some decent AL pitchers. Freddy Garcia has a .254 career BAA, and Mark Buerhle's is .270.

Silva also got lucky with very good run-support during his years with the playoff-bound Twins. In 2004, arguably Silva's best season, he had more than a run per game of support better than his teammate Brad Radke, and over 0.7 runs per game better than Johan Santana.

In short, 2 weeks does not a season make. Carlos Silva has never been that good, and he isn't now. Even if he gets a bit of a bump thanks to changing leagues, teams will easily have him figured out the second time around. He also doesn't strike anyone out, and that won't help his cause either. Enjoy it while it lasts.

12 - CF: it's not "interesting symmetrical reasoning." It's called regression toward the mean.

Contrary to your claim, Bradley is NOT "doing exactly what one would expect." What someone who doesn't believe in magic would expect is a performance similar to last year's, not much better, not much worse. But Bradley is under-performing based on last year.

Likewise, Silva is not doing what one would expect. He is over-performing - hugely. I always liked Silva, but regression is real (with some rare exceptions), and it's a bitch. You're setting yourself up for a lot of ridicule.