Tonight's Target: Brandon McCarthy

When Brandon McCarthy was drafted he told his hometown paper he planned to use his $70,000 signing bonus "for a car, a laptop computer and 'some clothes that I can finally fit into.'"

McCarthy, you see, is 6-7. He's that tall dude who looked pretty good as a spot starter the year the White Sox won the World Series, less so in 2006, and, since the Sox traded him to the Rangers in the off-season, has completely fallen apart.

McCarthy has a 5.53 ERA this year, and has not, in any of his 15 starts, gotten an out in the 7th inning. Yuck.

McCarthy's problem has been walks, he's averaging one every other inning. Combined with his general hittable-ness, this means that opponents are OBPing .352 on him. Not good.

McCarthy throws a low-90s fastball, a curveball, and an excellent change (batters hit .185 off the change). He's a nibbler, which explains the walks and the inability to go deep in games. The M's will need to have the patience to lay off his soft stuff and pitches that are out of the zone.

So if you see the M's get out in like five pitches in the first inning, look for McCarthy to notch his first 7 inning start and the Rangers to complete the sweep.