Jakubauskas to start, Rowland-Smith to DL

What to make of Carlos Silva?

As I noted yesterday, I’m starting to be a believer in the new-look Mariners (click through for Opening Day pictures), but the thrill of Opening Day can do that. Today’s news, that Chris Jakubauskas will join the starting rotation, something he earned in Peoria this March but only came to pass today, gives me more reasons to feel optimism. It suggests that, despite the payroll the best players are going to get time on the field. 

Jakubauskas, who had never made a major league roster in his 29 years until the Mariners brought him north, has pitched well in his four innings this month. He’s running a 4.50 ERA and picked up two strikes while winning a game. He’s performed well under pressure. Ryan Rowland-Smith, who had been tipped for Thursday’s start, will go on the disabled list instead with tendonitis in his triceps, according to U.S.S. Mariner. The move is retroactive to April 11, making Rowland-Smith eligible to return by the 26th, during the next Angels series in L.A.

What to make of Carlos Silva’s pitching yesterday? Some thoughts from one fan: 4 hits, 3 earned runs, one walk, four strikeouts over seven innings. Not bad. On the season, he’s got a still shaky 6.00 ERA, which is much closer to his miserable 2008 mark than when he won 13 games in 2007. He worked himself out of a bases-loaded situation last night, but he also loaded the bases. I’d like to see more starts like Tuesday and another Zduriencik-engineered trade to make more room for young arms, because Silva’s fundamentals are still out of whack.

Tonight’s lineup is:

Ichiro, RF
Chavez, LF
Griffey Jr. DH
Beltre, 3B
Branyan, 1B
Lopez, 2B
Johjima, C
Betancourt, SS
Gutierrez, CF

Starting: Jarrod Washburn, 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA.

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