The best game in the AL today is the battle of the hose as the White Sox host the Red Sox. John Burkett will face Bartolo Colon. Colon has been effective against lefties this year, allowing .297 OBA vs. LHB, while righties get on at a rate of .329. This is a departure from his career totals. The Red Sox use a number of lefties in their lineup; the starting lineup tonight is likely to have six lefty/switch hitters batting. That could be an advantage for Colon.

A split admission double header on the north side of Chicago makes this a great day for Windy City fans to revel in the national pastime. Both games look to be good ones, as Garret Stephenson of the Cardinals takes on red hot Carlos Zambrano of the Cubs in the afternoon, and struggling aces Matt Morris and Kerry Wood face each other in the night cap. A sweep by the Cubs and a loss by the Astros would put the Cubs into a tie for first place in the NL Central.

Montreal tries to get back into the wild card race against the Phillies tonight. They'll send their hot pitcher, Javier Vazquez against Amaury Telemaco. After yesterday's putrid game, Bill Lyon of the Philadelphia Inquirer thinks Bowa will go at the end of the season.

Cleveland continues its series with Detroit tonight. The only reason to tune in is to see if Jeremy Bonderman is saddled with his 19th loss. You have to feel a little sorry for the kid. He gets traded from one of the best organizations in baseball to one of the worst, the is thrown into the majors at the age of 20. He may take some solice in knowing that Greg Maddux was 6-14 in his first full season with the Cubs with an ERA of 5.61.

Mike Hampton is proving that he was a gamble worth taking. He'll face Al Leiter in NY tonight. Hampton is 4-1 with a 1.86 ERA in his last five starts. The Braves have turned out to be the perfect team for him; the rejuvenated offense offers plenty of support, and the excellent defense turns the balls put into play against him into outs.

Enjoy!