Our man Vladimir Guerrero and his Montreal teammates were spared contraction with the new labor agreement, but Vlad had a definitely un-Vlad-like week. He had only five hits in 22 at-bats (.227), and none of them were home runs. Still, he's hitting .333 with 35 homers and 92 RBIs for the Expos, who could be coming soon to a town near you -- especially if you live in, say, the Washington D.C. area.
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Monday-Wednesday, Bank One Ballpark, Phoenix
The final three games of this season series should be every bit as good as the first 16. The Diamondbacks and Dodgers, 1-2 in the National League West, are 8-8 against each other this season. When it gets right down to it, these three games probably won't make a huge difference in the NL West race (though they could). But they are hugely important for L.A., the NL wild-card leader. The Dodgers, luckily for them, won't have to face Curt Schilling in this series. He's 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA against the Dodgers this year. The Dodgers will get Randy Johnson on Wednesday. The Diamondbacks have been struggling, losing four of their last five games, finally snapping a season-high four-game losing streak on Sunday night with a ninth-inning comeback against the San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers, terrible right after the All-Star break, were 18-10 in August. A guy to watch: The Dodgers' Shawn Green has five homers and 12 RBIs against Arizona this season.
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Randy Johnson, Curt Schilling. Curt Schilling, Randy Johnson. CNNSI.com users have their ideas.
But before we get to that, let's lay this week's Peanut Gallery question on you: What's been the most impressive thing you've seen so far this season? The A's? Barry Bonds? Manny Ramirez? Curt Schilling? Shawn Green? The Mets' fold? The Twins? Atlanta's resurgence?
Click here to give us your opinion. And don't forget to include your name and hometown.
On to your thoughts on Schilling, Johnson and the National League Cy Young …
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Well, this could be decided by either a coin flip or a sausage race ... both
are deserving. But I would have to pick Curt Schilling for the Cy Young in
the NL because of one thing. Against L.A. a while back, Randy Johnson vs. Hideo Nomo, R.J. gave up a double to Nomo. A double to Nomo?? Forget about it.
-- Brian Watts, Long Beach, Calif.
Randy Johnson or Curt Schilling … hmmm ... I would have to give the nod to Randy Johnson. It may just be me but it seems like Schilling gets bailed out of a lot of 3-2 games (two or three I can think of since the Braves and D'Backs went at it). Aren't there more righties batting than lefties? So you would think a right handed pitcher would have a slight edge pitching against heavy right-handed batting (as if Schilling needs an edge). I'll give the nod to Johnson for that and he is simply much more intimidating to me (on TV, anyway).
-- Karl White, Phoenix
Hmmm ... let's see ... the two best pitchers in the league are on the same team. They're practically mirror images of each other in the way they pitch ... and the lefty has how many Cy Youngs? Give it to the righty ... in my mind Curt Schilling deserves it, if only because he's having at least as good a season as Johnson and has been overlooked before.
-- Mark Marshall, Ogallala, Neb.
Well, it's about time Curt had his day. Don't get me wrong -- I'm a
die-hard D'backs fan, born and raised in Phoenix, so either
choice is fine by me. But I think Curt deserves the recognition for
a superb season. Granted, they've both had their share of amazing,
record-setting style outings this season -- and they've also each had
their share of "dog-day" afternoons, but Randy has had it four times (third
consecutive time last season) and I don't think No. 5 will really mean that much to the Big Unit -- not compared to how much No. 1 will mean to the Big Chill. Curt has been right there with Randy in stats, from last year's world championship season through to the present. It's really is a tough call. Glad I don't have to make it. But I think it's finally time to honor the best right-hander in the NL (maybe in the game).
-- David D. Miller, Salt Lake City, Utah
Who would I rather have on my team? Randy Johnson, because lefty power pitchers are more rare. More impressive? Curt Schilling, because he is in a much larger field of pitchers. Not by much, but more nonetheless.
-- Michael Hayes, New York
Schill is by far the scariest pitcher in all of baseball. He has proven time and again that he can dominate just about any batter on any day.
-- Christee, St. Louis
Curt gets my vote. The man is a horse and is old-school consistent.
-- Bruce Hanby, Runnemede, N.J.
This is a no brainer!! You have to pick Randy Schilling, or was that Curt Johnson. What's the difference? Quibbling over who should get the Cy Young makes about as much sense as wondering whether you'd want to be marooned on a tropical island with Salma Hayek or Viveca Fox. Pick them both.
-- Bud Blancaster, Madison, Ala.
This is the classic question asked about Cobb v. Ruth or Aaron v. Mays in my fomative years. Please don't ask for any ID. There is no right answer. You pick both if you could, but you won't go wrong, barring injury, picking one or the other.
-- Jim Galler, Stokesdale, N.C.
Living near Seattle I am a major Mariners fan and, while he played for us, I enjoyed the wins that the Big Unit brought to our team. Now, however, he has relocated and I have "seen the light." Although he is an incredible pitcher (and a lefty at that) I would still have to go with Curt Schilling simply because he appears to me to be a much more refined, dominating pitcher, instead of mostly overpowering.
-- RJ, Vashon Island, Wash.
Sheer impressiveness, it's gotta be R.J. The guy is an imposing, dominating, 6-foot-10 lefty standing out there on the mound. He throws a Mr. Snappy that just falls off the table. Most impressive of all is that he throws gas that occasionally reaches triple digits and sets the slider up. It seems that it just isn't fair to the batters to have that kind of filthy stuff! A close second would be Schilling. For pinpoint control and power, Schilling is better than even Martinez this year. The guy has more wins than walks (and it's the end of August)!! And he's giving R.J. a run for the money on total K's. I understand something like this doesn't come around often, and it's a true joy to get to watch these two go to work on opposing hitters.
-- Jimbo Jones, Mesa, Ariz.
This is the easiest question posed. Ask Bob Brenly who he would start in Game 1 of the World Series. This would be the guy who would also start Game 4 and Game 7. Either that or flip a coin. This is truly a case of there being no wrong answers when you have narrowed it down to these two.
-- Jeff Sass, Lincoln, Neb.
With stats like these guys have, I say "Make the Cy a tie."
-- David Jourdan, Austin, Texas
My vote goes to Randy Johnson. He deals an attitude that says: Hit me if you can, and don't show me up or the next one will be off your helmet. He's baseball's best enforcer! His ERA and strikeouts speak volumes; he edges Curt by a whisker. The fact that I'm left-handed has nothing to do with my selection!
-- Bob Freeman, Riverside, Calif.
Schilling! And it's not because I am an old Phillies fan (changed allegiance while living in Colorado in the early '90s). In a game dominated by numbers we sometimes forget how an individual can affect a team's attitude. I will give you that for parts of his career Johnson has done that, but not always. Schilling has, as a Phillie and now as a Diamondback, and this year more than ever (excluding last year's playoffs). When he takes the mound the guys behind him KNOW they are going to win, and this year he has truly added pitching dominance to the mix. I will admit that based on talent Johnson wins by a hair, but this year Schilling has been the heart of the Diamondbacks. He not only leads on the field but in the clubhouse and with the media, maybe the best option is to give Johnson the Cy Young and Schilling the MVP.
-- Allen, Kenosha, Wis.
Josh Phelps, DH, Blue Jays
Our tribute to the banter of baseball 
Our man Vladimir Guerrero and his Montreal teammates were spared contraction with the new labor agreement, but Vlad had a definitely un-Vlad-like week. He had only five hits in 22 at-bats (.227), and none of them were home runs. Still, he's hitting .333 with 35 homers and 92 RBIs for the Expos, who could be coming soon to a town near you -- especially if you live in, say, the Washington D.C. area.
