Randy Johnson's 20-strikeout performance should receive the same acclaim as those from Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood.

Johnson equaled what Clemens and Wood did -- strike out 20 batters in nine innings. Whether or not the game went extra innings has nothing to do with the record. It was an individual performance, not a team performance. It's not Johnson's fault that the Diamondbacks only scored one run for him. If his team had scored two runs in nine innings, he would have won. But they didn't.

Statistics are becoming too technical. For example, how can anyone downgrade what Harvey Haddix did more than 40 years ago, when he pitched a perfect game for 12 innings? Again, it wasn't his fault the Pittsburgh Pirates didn't score for him. Now people say Haddix didn't pitch a no-hitter because he gave up a hit in the 13th inning.

Johnson, meanwhile, has been placed in the same category with Tom Cheney, who struck out 21 in 16 innings, for the second-most strikeouts in an extra-inning game. Like the accomplishments of Clemens and Wood, we should celebrate what Johnson did and leave it at that.

In addition to how Johnson's performance should be recognized, I have to question the use of some baseball terms. Instead of "foul pole," people are starting to call it the "fair pole." The "hit-and-run" is being called the "run-and-hit." They have always been called "foul pole" and "hit-and-run," so why change?

I have even heard people say "five RBI" and not "five ribbies." It has always been either "ribbies" or "RBIs," not "RBI." Players have never said, "I had five RBI." They would say "five ribbies." And I choose to side with the players.

Now, to the questions for this week ...

1. What are the White Sox' chances without Frank Thomas?
Thomas' season-ending injury is a devastating blow. The White Sox can't take away his production from the middle of the lineup and expect to roll on and win games. He was a far better offensive player than people give him credit for. Nearly every year, Thomas has produced 100 walks, 100 RBIs and 100 runs scored, things only Ted Williams and Babe Ruth used to do.

Usually, if a team has pitching and loses an offensive force, the team can make up for the loss in offense. But pitching is not the White Sox' forte, and they just lost Jim Parque as well. They have been struggling all year, and it will be difficult for them to recover without Thomas.

With Thomas, the White Sox had one of the best right-handed hitting lineups I have ever seen. But the rest of the hitters can't compensate for Thomas' loss. Magglio Ordonez had 126 RBIs last season; he can't drive in 150 more. Ordonez, Carlos Lee and Paul Konerko need to produce like they did last season and hope their pitching, even without Parque, can help. The White Sox will have to win with more pitching and defense, not with more offense.

2. Manny Ramirez has been a hit in Boston, but what about Juan Gonzalez in Cleveland? How valuable has he been to the surging Indians?
Offensively, like Ramirez has replaced Nomar Garciaparra in Boston, Gonzalez has replaced Ramirez in Cleveland. The result has been strong starts for both teams.

The Indians are not worse off because Gonzalez has replaced Ramirez's RBIs. Last year the top three hitters -- Kenny Lofton, Omar Vizquel and Roberto Alomar -- were unbelievable in front of Ramirez, scoring more than 100 runs each. Other than Alomar, they haven't been as good as a group in front of Gonzalez, who has still been driving in runs.

You never know about the Indians' pitching. Jaret Wright and Charles Nagy, however, should be back soon. Nagy has won 17 games three times in his career and is valuable, but Wright hasn't won many games. It's not like he will come back and carry them to a pennant. He can possibly add something and give the Indians some stability in their rotation.

Of the Indians' pitchers, Dave Burba is the most underrated. He usually has a high ERA, but he keeps winning. I believe in winning, not ERAs or batting averages. Burba is 5-1 and won three games during the Indians' 10-game streak, which was stopped Thursday.

3. Who is the game's best defensive second baseman?
That's a difficult question because I don't see the players every day. From what I have seen, I would pick Roberto Alomar and Pokey Reese, the two Gold Glove winners, as the top defensive second basemen. Between the two, take your pick. Reese is the younger player. I don't see any weaknesses in his defensive game. If he has any edge over Alomar, it may be in his ability to turn the double play. Reese has excellent range, has a shortstop's arm and is a tremendous defensive player.

4. Now that the Cardinals have decided to send Rick Ankiel back to the minor leagues, is it a good decision?
The Cardinals really had no choice but to send Ankiel to the minors. Tony La Russa stuck by him and did everything he possibly could. Even the other day, La Russa said they wouldn't send him to the minors. But he may have said that to reduce the pressure on Ankiel before his start on Thursday.

With their decision, the Cardinals had more to consider than just Ankiel. They are a team that is trying to win a championship. They owe it to the rest of the players to get the best group of pitchers they possibly can. Ankiel no longer fits into that category. He needs to go to the minor leagues, relax and get himself together.

Ankiel and La Russa deserve a lot of credit for being tough and trying to make it work. La Russa had him throwing at 6:30 a.m. He kept him away from the media during spring training. He did as much as he could to take the pressure off. But the pressure is back on.

Ankiel has to get himself together in the minors. He's a major-league pitcher, but he's not throwing like one now. The Cardinals can't send him to the bullpen. When would they use him? He's better off pitching and getting his mental focus back together, something he can only do in the minors. The Cardinals didn't have a choice. They had a responsibility to the team, not just Ankiel.

5. At what point in the season can we determine that a team's start is or is not a fluke?
Once teams get to 50 games, which would be around Memorial Day, trends start to take over. At the one-third mark, teams will know if they have a solid pitching staff and enough offense and defense to contend.

At 50 games, if the teams that started off strong have leads of 8-10 games in their respective divisions, then they are not flukes. If the Seattle Mariners are up 10 games in the AL West after 50 games, they will be smiling at everybody saying, "Come catch us."

Hall of Famer Joe Morgan works as an analyst for ESPN.