1. Glass case of emotion » Yes, the Mariners needed offense this offseason. Seattle has done an admirable job of quickly rebuilding through pitching and defense. But desperation is the cause of many bad decisions. And signing outfielder Milton Bradley last winter was one. Bradley had yet another blowup in the dugout Tuesday — similar to incidents last year with the Cubs. At least this time he owned up to it and asked for help dealing with “emotional stress.” Hopefully, after a stint on the restricted list, he returns in a better state of mind. But that doesn’t mean the Mariners should have rolled the dice on Bradley in the first place. He’s played for eight teams in 10 years for a reason.

2. Barry’s back » No, not Bonds. Not ever. But Barry Zito’s resurgence does have a certain back-from-oblivion quality to it. This is a guy, after all, who won a Cy Young with Oakland in 2002, faded into mediocrity for three seasons, had a solid contract year, inked a massive $126 million deal with the Giants and celebrated by … stinking up the joint for two years. But Zito began righting the ship last season with a passable July and a stellar August and it’s carried over into 2010 — thanks in large part to the return of his killer breaking ball. It’s Zito, not Tim Lincecum, who leads the Giants in wins (5) and ERA among starters (1.49) entering the second week of May. If he’s hot, the Giants are the favorite in the NL West.

3. Mr. Clutch » Everyone in the District loves Ryan Zimmerman and his super-clutchiness — if we may coin a word. But at this point he’s got nothing on Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier. The 28-year-old has 11 game-ending hits since the start of the 2008 season. No one in baseball has more. No, not even Pete Franchise. Ethier watched his team blow a lead in the top of the ninth inning against the Brewers on Thursday. So he simply came up and hit a grand slam to win it in the bottom of the ninth. It was Ethier’s second grand slam of the season — despite just two chances with the bases full. It’s all part of his breakthrough season. Ethier ended the week tops in baseball in OPS and second in batting average.

SERIES TO WATCH
Padres at Giants, Tuesday-Thursday
Admit it, when the MLB schedule came out, you had no idea this mid-week series between the Fathers and Large Men would be for first place in the upside-down NL West. But with the Dodgers struggling and the Rockies and Diamondbacks playing mediocre baseball, it’s the Giants (behind great pitching) and the Padres (behind great, um, voodoo?) who have taken control of the division. On the bump, it’s advantage Giants, with Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez and Tim Lincecum scheduled to start.