Yeah, it was a little scarier than you would have liked, but still, a win against Roy Halladay is a win against Roy Halladay, and I'll take it.
And kudos to Ron Washington for making the bold, unconventional, and correct move by going and getting Frankie Francisco in the 8th inning in a crucial situation, rather than saving him for a save situation which might not have arrived if he hadn't brought Frankie into the game when he did.
Jeff Wilson's game story focuses on Francisco, who had never had to get the final five outs of the game in a save situation before yesterday.
Of course, part of the reason Washington ended up having to bring Frankie into the game when he did was Brandon McCarthy's inability to get past the sixth inning. Heading into the sixth, it looked like Brandon was going to be able to go seven, but a 10 pitch at bat by Adam Lind, and a walk to Lyle Overbay, ran his pitch count into the mid-90s, which led to Eddie Guardado starting the 7th.
McCarthy is now 2-0 with a 4.76 ERA on the season, which is okay, but drilling down in the numbers gives you cause for concern. He has a 7.20 FIP right now, with 5 homers allowed, 9 walks, and 14 strikeouts. McCarthy is going to give up homers, but the walk number is something that is going to have to come down if he's going to continue to post a sub-5 ERA. On the plus side, he's gone from 4 walks to 3 walks to 2 walks in his starts this season, so the number is coming down, but still...there's going to have to be improvement going forward.
Kris Benson's elbow tendinitis has been an issue since spring training, but he's saying he thinks he's good now, and won't have any more problems. We shall see. I still won't be surprised if he ends up on the d.l. this week.
Evan Grant has some notes up as well, comparing Brandon McCarthy to Rick Helling, and talking about some adjustments Michael Young has made in working with Dave Anderson which may have made the difference on that game-saving snag last night in the 8th.
You have to feel bad for Grant, who is skipping the trip to Toronto, but who is going to Baltimore later in the week. Being given the choice between Toronto and Baltimore is like being given the choice between...well, similes fail me. Like being given the choice between somewhere really great and somewhere that sucks.
Mike Hindman has a detailed write-up of Kasey Kiker's outstanding 7 inning stint for Frisco yesterday, including pitch charts. And Evan Grant has some quotes from pitching coach Joe Slusarski and a scout about Kiker.