we are back in first place. thanks to c.c. my how times have changed. the last time i posted, 17 games into the young season, i was feeling very bleak in regards to c.c. now his resurgence has led the charge to retake first place. we are back in first place thanks to his complete game shut out tonight against the one team that has owned him throughout his career. his arch enemy: the oakland A's.

once again, our depth has been tested. jake westbrook went down shortly after i posted. jeremy sowers was called up to take his place and pitch against the yankees. jeremy did adequate, and we won the game. two days later, aaron laffey was called up and had a no hitter thru 5 innings, also against the yankees. a rain out and subsequent double header against KC was listed as the reason for requiring both call ups. i believe is was an audition. laffey won out, and has stuck around and pitched AWESOME. he looks way better than he did at any time last year. he fits in, which is saying alot.

the reason, our starting pitching has been phenomenal. c.c. started a streak against toronto and every member of the rotation has kept it going. they quit giving up runs.

our starting pitchers have quit giving up runs. fausto had a complete gamer. cliff did too, but we did not score any runs either, so he only got a ND for his efforts. then tonight, c.c. kept the ball rolling. now it is laffey's turn again to throw up goose eggs and help us sweep the A's. so the count is at 43 some innings. plus, as a team; we have 5 shutouts in our last 8 games.

i am still worried overall. the bullpen is still sketchy. and an anemic offense sooner or later will further expose this weakness. masa does look awesomely adjusted. despite two saves vs the a-rodless yanks, raffy b IS NOT THE SAME PITCHER HE WAS LAST YEAR. but raffy perez does seem more consistent. as does jensen lewis. and if joe b comes back and is 100%, then we will be alright. any of the three aforementioned pitchers can take his place. as long as they REMAIN consistent. and i think raffy can rebound. he has never done this bad, ever. once joe b comes back, i would let raffy b sit. for about a week or two. rest him up, he was used alot last year. have him fresh and hot for the end of the season. he is too good to be this bad.

as for that anemic offense. jason michaels got the axe. i liked him. he was one of those gritty hard nosed players and his D was most excellent. a perfect late inning defnsive guy who hit pretty well against kefties. he was mostly a walks and singles guy though. i am sure that is why he was let go. his awesome D is a luxury we cannot afford right now. definitely a wake up call to all. but ben fransisco does own last year's AAA batting crown. and he has produced at this level. it was good to see him gun down a runner at third. even if it was just a slow footed rolen running like he was a fleet footed runner that he never has been.

peralta looks terrible. he and hafner look at times like the are simply guessing, then shutting their eyes and swinging. and peralta's improving D has seemed to have somewhat regressed. i wanted to trade him last year. i wanted them to trade him this offseason. i hope they trade him this season. get a good run producing OFer, move AC to his natural position, bring up barfield.

and i am unsure about garko. he does have HR's in consecutive games. but he often looks over matched. and the only period of great success he ever had was the end of the year '06. he had to battle for his spot on the roster to start '07. at the start of camp that year, it sounded doubtful that he would be in the bigs. but after making the team, he has never looked back.

and as far as marte, what the heck dude?! he will have to battle just to get his BA up to .200.

and we have the casey blake from an alternate universe this year. this casey only hits clutch. he leads his team in RBI despite .200-.230ish.

i am worried, but i feel i should not be. i hope my gut is right.