1.   For one brief, shining season, Steve Stone was among the best pitchers in baseball.

2.   The best pitchers are back at the front of the line, starting Thursday.

3.   The Giants always said he had the stuff, the command, the unflappable nature of the very best pitchers.

4.   Although the best pitchers from both leagues are assembled, it seems unlikely they will be able to work enough magic to keep the score low.

5.   And Maddux, a four-time Cy Young award winner, is hardly the best pitcher to end a slump against.

6.   Anderson, however, no longer makes remarks about becoming the best pitcher in the history of the game, something he said after being drafted.

7.   And yet, the Mariners might have prevailed despite the loss of the best pitcher in baseball, had they kept free agent pitcher Tim Belcher.

8.   Arrojo, who was considered the best pitcher in Cuba, is expected to soon elicit handsome offers from big league ball clubs.

9.   As an eighth-grader, he was probably the best pitcher in Alaska, Cary, his old coach, said.

10.   At one point, he was the best pitcher in the Bay Area, and by a considerable margin.