Going West

Marlins rookie Sean West, known to some as "Little Unit," carried a no-hitter into the seventh against the Giants and wound up with an eight-inning, two-hit shutout. The long, lean lefthander not only won for the first time in his fourth MLB start, he also beat Randy Johnson, the pitcher to whom he most often copmpared. Johnson sounded very impressed with the 22-year-old after the game.

“It’s a lot of pressure. You try not to think about it but it’s there. But he has to be happy about the way he pitched,” Johnson said.

Fantasy Impact: Johnson knows a thing or two about tossing no-hitters. West knows some things about pitching. He's sporting a 2.22 ERA and has allowed just 14 hits in 24 1/3 innings. He's worth a flier in most formats.

The last 300-game winner will not be Unit

Please stop writing about this. The question was asked when Greg Maddux became the latest 300 game winner. It was asked against when Tom Glavine became the even-more-latest 300-game winner. Randy Johnson will not be the last 300-game winner. No way.

The fact that rarely is there a pitcher nearing 300 wins when the latest pitcher turns the milestone means nothing, and while we acknowledge that winning 300 is one of the hardest things to do in baseball, Randy Johnson became the 24th pitcher to do so in a 5-1 victory over Washington Thursday night.

If you divide 24 pitchers over 133 years of Major League Baseball, a pitcher gets to 300 wins about every 5.5 years. While there's merit in the belief that it is growing harder and harder to earn that many victories over a career, Maddux, Glavine, Johnson and Roger Clemens each got to 300 over a period of six seasons. That's one 300-game winner every 1.5 seasons. If anything, the milestone is getting reached more often than ever before.

While the past handful of years is a small sample size and not necessarily a fair measure of pitching history or of the future, greatness will always be greatness. Great pitchers will always dominate, and the best ones will do it for a long, long time. While it will be hard to predict whom will become the next 300-game winner, it's even more difficult to predict the last of anything.

Remember when the 49ers would be the last football dynasty due to the use of a salary cap in the NFL? Along came the Patriots. Remember when Villanova was the last legitimate Cinderella to crash the Final Four? Along came George Mason. Remember when Randy Johnson was considered as possibly the last 300-game winner? We'll look back at that argument and laugh.

Sean West: "Little Unit?"

The Florida Marlins recently recalled minor-leaguer Sean West to fill-out their ailing rotation. The 6'8, 200 lb lefty has earned comparisons to Randy Johnson during his time in the minors for both his long, lanky delivery and propensity for walks and strikeouts.

In two starts at the MLB level, West has mustered just seven Ks in 12 innings, and he showed his wildness the second time out by walking four batters in just five innings. West showed a willingness to battle each time out, throwing 91 pitches in both no-decisions. The Marlins eventually lost both games.

Fantasy Impact: The 22-year-old 2005 supplemental-round pick looks comfortable at the Major League level. Take a flier if you're in need of a power pitcher. He can kill you in leagues that penalize walks, but with an ability to limit hits, West's WHIP numbers should be tolerable.

Northside Unit

Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune wonders if the Cubs should pick up Randy Johnson.

Is it really crazy stupid?

Johnson has a career 91-35 record in day games, and his 2.41 earned-run average in the second-half of 2008 suggests he’s not cooked yet. But he also served up 24 home runs, and is a fly ball pitcher like fellow lefty Ted Lilly. We all know he’s not exactly a warm and fuzzy guy, but that shouldn’t matter to Hendry if Dempster leaves and he has to find a replacement.

But he's 45 and unreliable from a health standpoint. That means he's a stop-gap option at best. Johnson will not be a Cub if they can get anyone else of ability.