The National League Cy Young Race just got a little clearer

I think it is safe to remove Ubaldo Jimenez from the Cy Young front runner list.

He's had a terrific year. I'll go out and say it was the best year a Rockies pitcher ever had. He threw a memorable no hitter, had a mind boggling first half and can still wind up as the first 20 game winner in Rockies history if he can win one more game over the next 2 weeks.

But stats wise, he no longer is keeping pace with Adam Wainwright nor Roy Halladay. And last night, in a game where his team NEEDED him to post a win and keep pace with San Diego, he laid an egg.

Big time aces keep their team in the race.

Brandon Webb's failures against Los Angeles in 2008 probably cost him a Cy Young Award.

So my hat is tipped to Ubaldo... he had a terrific year.
But he is no longer on the Cadillac board.

Hey Adam Wainwright. Now would be a good time to WANT that Cy Young

At one point Adam Wainwright looked like the Cy Young Front Runner...

He was 17-6 with an ERA of 1.99 on August 11 and it looked like a 20 win season and a sub 2.00 ERA were in his future.

Then it looked like he decided to make a conscious effort to hand it over to Roy Halladay.
He had been 1-5 since and his ERA has jumped up .51 points.

Now of course he is still in the mix for the Cy Young and some of his losses were tough luck losses.

But a big win here would go a long way. A nice domination of the Padres would land him win #19 and make his ERA closer to 2.00 than 3.00. And the fans would love him for it...

Not the Cardinals fans... GIANTS fans.

Giant fans have images of a Division Title dancing in their heads and the Padres going on another skid would go a long way to making that true.

So come on! It is fun to be loved. Cardinals fans will love you forever if for no other reason than clinching the 2006 World Series.

You can have San Francisco fans love you too and you don't even need to change uniforms.

So come on, Adam. A Cy Young would look good on your mantle. Go for it tomorrow.

Taking stock as the season winds down

I took stock on the season at the 1/3 mark, and then at the half way point.

I had promised to do so on Labor Day as the season goes into its final lap and here I am.

There's not much suspense for the Yankees, Rays, Rangers and Reds who all seem to have their playoff spots locked up.

But looking at San Diego and their current implosion shows you can never be 100% sure who is going to end up where. (Has anyone else noticed the Rockies aren't dead yet?)

There are injuries that make some of the awards up for grabs as well as some slumps that turned front runners into mere contenders... or in Tim Lincecum's case totally off the board.

So with more or less a month to go, let's take a look at the playoff picture and who should be in line for post season hardware (and compare those to my 1/3 picks and 1/2 way picks.)

If the playoffs started today...

AL East Champion New York Yankees
Would have home field advantage over
AL West Champion Texas Rangers

AL Central Champion Minnesota Twins
Would have home field advantage over
AL Wild Card Tampa Bay Rays

(The Chicago White Sox would be within 3 games in the loss column of a playoff spot.)

NL East Champion Cincinnati Reds
Would have home field advantage over
N. L. Wild Card Philadelphia Phillies

NL East Champion Atlanta Braves
Would have home field advantage over
NL West Champion San Diego Padres

(The Giants are within 1 game of a playoff spot.)

(At the 1/3 Mark, The Rays had home field over Oakland, the Twins had home field over the Yankees. The Cardinals had home field over the Braves while the Padres still had home field over the Reds

At the 1/2 way mark, the Yankees had homefield over the White Sox while the Rangers would host the Rays. Meanwhile the Braves would have homefield over the winner of a Rockies and Dodgers playoff while the Padres would have homefield over the Reds.)

AL MVP:
MIGUEL CABRERA, Tigers
I had Josh Hamilton here, but his ribcage injury might take him out of commission. Cabrera has the OPS, the Average, the power and ranks at the top of W.A.R. It's not his fault the Tigers faded.

In the running:
EVAN LONGORIA, Rays. ROBINSON CANO, Yankees. JOSH HAMILTON, Rangers.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Miguel Cabrera as the MVP.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Josh Hamilton as the MVP.)

NL MVP:
JOEY VOTTO, Reds
He is pulling away from Pujols in OPS and is near the top in virtually every single offensive category. And oh yeah, his Reds have opened up a big lead with Joey Votto as their main man.

In the running:
ALBERT PUJOLS, Cardinals. CARLOS GONZALEZ, Rockies. ADRIAN GONZALEZ, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Albert Pujols as the MVP.
At the 1/2 was mark, I had Joey Votto as the MVP.)

AL CY YOUNG:
FELIX HERNANDEZ, Mariners
Yeah, I know his record is only 11-10. He also leads the league in ERA, strikeouts, innings pitched and a lot of other categories that I don't understand. If the Cy Young goes to the best pitcher, then King Felix is the best.

In the running:
CLAY BUCHHOLZ, Red Sox. CC SABATHIA, Yankees. TREVOR CAHILL, A's. DAVID PRICE, Rays.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jon Lester as the Cy Young.
At the 1/2 way mark I had David Price as the Cy Young.)

NL CY YOUNG:

ROY HALLADAY, Phillies
The fascinating Cy Young chase could come down to the last few weeks. Right now Halladay has been the horse the Phillies need and has the gaudy stats to back up his "Ace" title. He right now is the pitcher to beat.

In the running:

UBALDO JIMENEZ, Rockies. ADAM WAINWRIGHT, Cardinals. CHRIS CARPENTER, Cardinals. TIM HUDSON, Braves. MAT LATOS, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark AND the 1/2 was mark, I had Ubaldo Jimenez as the Cy Young.)

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
NEFTALI FELIZ, Rangers
A couple of bad games made his ERA swell, but he has supplied the AL West leading Rangers were a steady hand at the back end of the bullpen.

In the running:

BRIAN MATUSZ, Orioles. AUSTIN JACKSON, Tigers. JEREMY HELLICKSON, Rays. JOHN JASO, Blue Jays.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Mitch Talbot as the AL Rookie of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Brennan Boesch as the Rookie of the Year.)

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
BUSTER POSEY, Giants
Posey has been everything and more that the Giants could have asked for. He hits for average, for power, gets on base and has supplied a team starved for offense a spark and a flair for the dramatic. Seems to be solid behind the plate as well.

In the running:
JAIME GARCIA, Nationals. GABY SANCHEZ, Marlins. JASON HEYWARD, Braves.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jason Heyward as the Rookie of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Jamie Garcia as the Rookie of the Year.)

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
OZZIE GUILLEN, White Sox
I was leaning towards Joe Maddon, but the recent surge by Ozzie's White Sox shows just how dangerous they can be. Could Manny's prescience be a positive thing in Chicago. They just want him for a month (maybe two.)

In the running:
RON WASHINGTON, Rangers. RON GARDENHIRE, Twins. JOE MADDON, Rays. JOE GIRARDI, Yankees.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Joe Maddon as the Manager of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Ozzie Guillen as the Manager of the Year.)

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
DUSTY BAKER, Reds
The recent collapse by the Padres took Bud Black out of the running for top spot here. The Reds were supposed to be a fringe contender... not cruising to a Division title with home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

In the running:
BOBBY COX, Braves. JIM TRACY, Rockies. BUD BLACK, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark AND the 1/2 way mark, I had Dusty Baker as the Manager of the Year.)

AL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR

VLADIMIR GUERRERO, Rangers
How often do you pick up a 100 RBI guy from the scrap heap? There will me more responsibility on his shoulders with Josh Hamilton's injury.

In the running:
VERNON WELLS, Blue Jays. ALEX RIOS, White Sox. EDWIN JACKSON, White Sox. FRANCISCO LIRIANO, Twins.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Vernon Wells as the Comeback Player of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Vladimir Guerrero as the Comeback Player of the Year.)

NL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
TIM HUDSON, Braves
Forget comeback player... Hudson is making a run at the Cy Young Award. 15 wins and a 2.30 ERA will do that.

In the running:
SCOTT ROLEN, Reds. RICKIE WEEKS, Brewers. AUBREY HUFF, Giants.

BIGGEST BUST IN THE AL:
JAVIER VAZQUEZ, Yankees
He was brought back to the Bronx to be a solid #2 starter as Yankee brass was convinced he no longer had the jitters that he showed in his first Yankee tour. It turns out he still had them. His starting stats have been disastrous for the Yankees who need rotation stability in order to repeat.

In the running:
JOSH BECKETT, Red Sox. JOBA CHAMBERLAIN, Yankees. MILTON BRADLEY, Mariners.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Josh Beckett as the biggest bust in the AL
At the 1/2 way mark I had Milton Bradley as the biggest bust in the AL)

BIGGEST BUST IN THE NL
JASON BAY, Mets
Bay had become a symbol of how the Mets use money poorly while the Yankees (at least in 2009) spent wisely. Everyone and their dog knew Jason Bay would struggle in CitiField, except evidently the Mets front office. His season ended in late July with a concussion, but his stats were ordinary at best with the Mets.)

In the running:
AKI IWAMURA, Pirates. ARAMIS RAMIREZ, Cubs. MARK DeROSA, Giants.

(At the 1/3 point I had Carlos Lee as the biggest bust in the NL
And at the 1/2 way point I had Carlos Zambrano as the biggest bust in the NL)


So here we go... the players in the running can all win some off season hardware with a push in September.

I hope to be back here at the end of the regular season talking about the great Red Sox comeback.

Cheer up Roy... I think you should win the Cy Young Award

Last night's performance by Roy Halladay was far from his best this year.
Then again, he threw a perfect game earlier this year... safe to say he isn't topping THAT any time soon.

He struggled early and put the Phillies behind 2-0 and 3-2... then he settled down. He gave the Phillies 7 innings and allowed them a shot to win. Which he did.

For those who are in love with wins, he has 17, the same as Adam Wainwright and Ubaldo Jimenez.

Halladay's ERA is just .02 more than Wainwright's but he's thrown many more innings.

And unlike Wainwright, Halladay picked up a win today that his team sorely needs.

As of this writing, he's my choice to win the Cy Young Award.

That could change at any moment.

Hey Adam... why don't you want to win the Cy Young Award?

For the second straight start, Adam Wainwright can't make it to the 6th inning and the chance for win #18 goes down the toilet again. Unless the Cardinals go on a mongo comeback, he'll have lost his 5 straight decision.

So when he was 17-6 with a 1.99 ERA, the Cy Young was his to lose.
Barring a Reds bullpen collapse he will be 17-10 with a 2.34 ERA... great numbers to be sure, but not good enough to call the race.

Does he have an incentive clause to NOT win it?

Adam Wainwright continues to show his amazing generosity

Once again, Adam Wainwright could have taken all momentum of the Cy Young award, put it under his wing and make it his to lose.

Instead he lost his 3rd straight chance to win his 18th.
His ERA jumped from 2.18 to 2.30 and he only lasted 5 innings against the Nats and the Cardinals have fallen to 4 games back in the loss column.

Aces are supposed to face sub par teams and STOP losing streaks.

Instead Roy Halladay, Ubaldo Jimenez, Chris Carpenter and Tim Hudson are all still hanging around with Cy Young ambitions and you are keeping their hope alive.

Man... he is nice, isn't he?

Tim Hudson says "PUT ME ON THE CADILLAC BOARD!"

Tim Hudson won today for the Braves... making him 7-2 in games after a Braves loss. Sounds like a losing streak stopper to me.

He won his 15th game today... sounds like a #1 starter to me.

He struck 13 while only walking 1 and letting up 1 run over 7 innings today... sounds like a stud to me.

His 2.24 ERA puts him at #3 in the league...and he ranks high in wins, WHIP and batting average against, all while doing it for a first place club.

Sounds like a Cy Young contender to me!

If Ubaldo Jimenez, Roy Halladay, Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter don't look out, this could be Hudson's Cy Young this year.

He does not need to PUT THE COFFEE DOWN!

Adam Wainwright. Don't you WANT to win the Cy Young?

Seriously... you had the chance to take the prohibitive lead in the Cy Young. A chance for your 18th win. A chance to bring the ole ERA closer to 2.00.

And the Cardinals gave you the lead against the Pirates... if there is a worse team, then they don't play in the majors.

And yeah you went 7 innings, but you couldn't hold onto the lead and let up 4 runs to the lowly Bucs.

I like the Cy Young race being interesting... but I wouldn't mind seeing someone take charge.

Adam Wainwright just couldn't make this easy, could he?

Adam Wainwright went into tonight's game as the only starting pitcher with qualifying innings to have a sub 2.00 ERA. He was tied with the league lead in wins with 17 and had the lowest WHIP and the second lowest bating average against.

And he did all of that with the fourth highest innings count in the National League.

Well after tonight, he has the second highest win total and still leads the league in all the above categories. And he pitched well... well enough to win 9 out of 10 games.

But his ERA crept above 2 and his win total is stagnant. And Halladay, Jimenez and yes Tim Hudson are still hanging around.

Oh yeah, Josh Johnson won again.

This isn't ending any time soon.

There will be a new Cy Young winner in the National League

I've been writing a lot about the 2010 National League Cy Young race. I started writing in April when it became clear this was going to be a special year, pitching wise.

I wrote about it as recently as yesterday and I will probably be writing about it through the end of the season.

And I've always mentioned Tim Lincecum in the conversation out of respect for the two time defending Cy Young winner and also because I knew he was always a dominant month from reclaiming the lead.

Well, I don't think it is happening. Not after today. The stats don't match up with Adam Wainwright, Roy Halladay, Josh Johnson or Ubaldo Jimenez (who was robbed of win #18 today.)

And the Giants needed him. They were 2-8 against the Padres for the season, but after yesterday's come from behind thriller, the Giants were on the verge of winning a critical series, pulling to with 1 1/2 games and serving notice that they are as formidable as any team in the National League.

Instead he got thumped. The Giants have only won 2 of 11 games against the Padres.
Can you imagine if the Giants were merely mediocre against the Padres?

Let's say they were 5-6 instead of 2-9. Still allowing a losing record to San Diego.

If that were the case, the Giants would be 70-49... the best record in the National League.
The Padres would be 66-50, 2 1/2 back, 1 in the loss column.

Instead the Giants are 5 back in the loss column and have the Phillies only one back in the loss column for the Wild Card.

A win would have been big today, but Lincecum didn't come up big.

A few years ago, Brandon Webb looked like a lock to win his second Cy Young Award. But a pair of terrible starts against the Dodgers that helped knock Arizona out of the pennant race cost him dearly.

The pitcher who won in his place?
Tim Lincecum.

It comes full circle.

Could this be the most intriguing Cy Young race ever?

Every time I think someone has taken control of the race and made it their own... another stud makes themselves heard.

Just yesterday I was all but declaring Adam Wainwright the winner... but today Roy Halladay declared "NOT SO FAST!"

He won his 15th game and threw 8 shutout innings (and walked NOBODY).

He leads the league in strikeouts, innings pitched and complete games. And today's game was a must win to stop the bleeding doozy.

So it could be Halladay... but Jimenez pitches tomorrow, as does Lincecum in a critical inter division game.

We've had tight years for Cy Young voting before, but most of the time it was either because there was NO dominant candidate or it was down to two solid pitchers (like Maddux and Glavine in 1992.)

But this year, between Jimenez, Wainwright, Halladay, Johnson and maybe even Tim Hudson and Lincecum there are more aces than we can measure.

It comes down to the last month and a half.

They have my attention.

Is THAT anyway to try and win a Cy Young Award?

Seriously, Josh Johnson... it wasn't that long ago that you were a trendy Cy Young front runner choice. And going into today's game against a recently swept Reds team, you had a 1.97 ERA, best among big league starters.

But with Adam Wainwright on your tail in the ERA lead, it was critical to post a good win against Cincy.

3 2/3 innings, 10 hits and 6 earned runs later, your ERA is all the way up to 2.27, giving Wainwright the league lead in wins, ERA and WHIP.

Now Johnson is only a trendy pick for the Cy Young in the Johnson household.

In fact, Braves star Tim Hudson may have leap frogged Johnson among Cy Young contenders.

Dust yourself off Josh and get back in it... the most intriguing Cy Young race I have ever seen continues.

It's ANYONE'S Division to win but Wainwright's Cy Young to lose

I am sure this is not how Brandon Phillips saw this series unfold... The Reds went from 2 up to 1 back... and Cincinnati has 47 games to get back on track.

If they don't they can look squarely at this weekend as a big time lost opportunity... when they showed they couldn't play with the big boys.

The Reds are part of my "Less Than Magnificent Seven"... the seven teams that went from 2000 to 2009 without making the post season once.

They can get off the schnide with a division title in a month and a half... and the lead in the NL Central hasn't been more than 2 games since May 9th with the exception of one day where the Reds opened up a 3 game lead.

In other words, a tradition filled midwestern team that has a lot of red in their uniform will be playing in October this year... your guess is as good as mine as which one.

But despite Ubaldo Jimene's solid performance last night in New York, Adam Wainwright at this point has to be the Cy Young winner.

He came up big in today's big game that put the Cardinals in first by themselves.

He's matched Jimenez's 17 wins... his ERA has joined Josh Johnson as sub 2.00. Wainwright's 1.99 ERA trailed Johnson's league leading ERA by 0.02 points.

His 0.97 WHIP is the lowest in the league.

His 176 1/3 innings pitched is second only to Roy Halladay. His batting average against is third in the league.

It's an amazing year for aces, and a strong August and September could put Jimenez, Johnson, Halladay and even Lincecum into the winner's circle.

But right now, it needs to be wrestled from Wainwright.

Don't be surprised if Halladay winds up winning the Cy Young

I've been flip flopping left and right on the NL Cy Young award ever since it became clear in April that there were going to be a LOT of contenders.

For most of the year it looked like Ubaldo Jimenez's to lose.

Then Josh Johnson looked like the front runner and more recently I've been leaning towards Adam Wainwright.

But when the dust settles, and if the Phillies continue their huge comeback, it could very well be Roy Halladays. And yesterday's performance convinces me he might be the guy.

"BUT WAIT!" Say all the stats people. "He let up 5 runs today! He didn't have his best stuff yesterday! Yesterday was a subpar performance!"

Yes, I know that... and he still pitched well enough to win, take pressure off of the bullpen and keep the Phillies winning ways alive, taking the series from the Mets.

While a lot of stats people think baseball is played in a vacuum and things like "run support" and "winning the game" are irrelevant, I think it shows something from your ace when they don't have their best stuff and can hold on to win anyway.

I know that makes me irrelevant, but I have a feeling the team was grateful and the bullpen was happy.

Yeah, his run total was high, but he gave them 7 innings, struck out 10 and walked 1. (Isn't strike outs to walks a coveted stat?)

His WHIP is 4th in the NL.

For those who value wins (remember, the point of the game?) he has the third highest total behind Jimenez and Wainwright.

For those who like strikeouts, he has the most in the NL.

Nobody has pitched more innings in all of baseball (he should pass 200 innings before Labor Day.)

Nobody has completed more games or thrown more shutouts in all of baseball.

And oh yeah... since they hit rock bottom and were on the verge of being a .500 team in late July... he's gone 4-0, averaging more than 7 2/3 a start and a 2.03 ERA (and that includes the 5 runs today). He's also striking out better than 1 an inning. And he's winning games the Phillies NEED as they will probably make up a 7 game deficit and in all likely hood he'll be the ace of the Division Champion.

Not that those sort of things matter any more.

Adam Wainwright... Cy Young front runner?

It seems like Ubaldo Jimenez has been the front runner for the Cy Young Award for so long that it almost seemed silly to look at other candidates.

And then suddenly we all looked up and Josh Johnson somehow passed him on the radar.

Well now it is looking more and more like Wainwright is the one to vote for.

Last night he threw another complete game shutout (he is second in the league for both complete games and shutouts to Roy Halladay)... which gives him 16 wins (second to Jimenez's 17 wins) an ERA of 2.07 (second to Josh Johnson's 1.96) a WHIP of 1.00 (second to Mat Latos's 0.99) in 169 innings pitched (second to Roy Halladay's 178).

(His 154 strikeouts puts him in third in the NL... it was almost so perfectly lined up.)

Being #2 in so many categories should put him #1 in the Cy Young vote... at least at this juncture.

Now a dominating August and September could put Jimenez back on top... or Johnson... or even Halladay.

Wainwright already has the ultimate team highlight... clinching the 2006 World Series. Now to snag the top individual achievement.

He's in second place so many times that he might have to be in first.

Taking stock of the first 1/2 of the season

Back on May 31st, I took a look at the approximate 1/3 point of the season... took a look at who the playoff teams were and the front runners for the post season awards and a few other observations.

It seems like the 1/3 point of the season is absurdly early to evaluate how teams will pan out... but looking over what I wrote, a lot of the same names are the same.

It is interesting that Edwin Jackson was in the running for Biggest Bust in the NL... and when the year is over he very well might be a bust. But he added a no hitter to his resume.

So let's look at where we stand as we are about to embark in the second half of the 2010 season and compare them to the results at the 1/3 mark.

If the playoffs started today...

AL East Champion New York Yankees
Would have home field advantage over
AL Central Champion White Sox

AL West Champion Texas Rangers
Would have home field advantage over
AL Wild Card Tampa Bay Rays

(The Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers would be within 3 games of a playoff spot.)

NL East Champion Atlanta Braves
Would have home field advantage over the Winner of a
Wild Card Tie Breaker Between
Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers

NL West Champion San Diego Padres
Would have home field advantage over
NL Central Champion Cincinnati Reds

(At the 1/3 Mark, The Rays had home field over Oakland, the Twins had home field over the Yankees. The Cardinals had home field over the Braves while the Padres still had home field over the Reds)

AL MVP:
JOSH HAMILTON, Rangers
The batting and hits leader is also in the top 4 of OPS, slugging, RBI and home runs. He is a potential triple crown threat.

In the running:
MIGUEL CABRERA, Tigers. JUSTIN MORNEAU, Twins. ROBINSON CANO, Yankees. KEVIN YOUKILIS, Red Sox.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Miguel Cabrera as the MVP.)

NL MVP:
JOEY VOTTO, Reds
The top OPS and home run man in the league, he is also among the league leaders in RBI and is batting .314. Also has led the Reds to a surprising first place position. People know him now after his initial All Star snub.

In the running:
ALBERT PUJOLS, Cardinals. DAVID WRIGHT, Mets. ANDRE ETHIER, Dodgers. ADRIAN GONZALEZ, Padres. RAFAEL FURCAL, Dodgers.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Albert Pujols as the MVP.)

AL CY YOUNG:
DAVID PRICE, Rays
Leads the league in ERA and wins and has the Rays back on track for a trip to October.

In the running:
JON LESTER, Red Sox. CC SABATHIA, Yankees. CLIFF LEE, Mariners/Rangers. FELIX HERNANDEZ, Mariners.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jon Lester as the Cy Young.)

NL CY YOUNG:

UBALDO JIMENEZ, Rockies

Sure his numbers are not as superhuman as they were a few months ago. But his 15-1 record, 2.20 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and .198 BAA (second in the league) are all eye popping, especially when you consider where his home park is.

In the running:

JOSH JOHNSON, Marlins. ADAM WAINWRIGHT, Cardinals. ROY HALLADAY, Phillies. TIM LINCECUM, Giants.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Ubaldo Jimenez as the Cy Young.)

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
BRENNAN BOESCH, Tigers
Has helped the Tigers to be in or around first place with a .342 average, 12 homers and an OPS of .990.

In the running:

NEFTALI FELIZ, Rangers. AUSTIN JACKSON, Tigers. MITCH TALBOT, Indians. JOHN JASO, Blue Jays.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Mitch Talbot as the AL Rookie of the Year.)

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
JAMIE GARCIA, Cardinals
He has put up solid stats including an 8-4 record, a 2.10 ERA and will give the Cardinals about 200 innings when all is said and done.

In the running:
STEPHEN STRASBURG, Nationals. BUSTER POSEY, Giants. GABY SANCHEZ, Marlins. IKE DAVIS, Mets. JASON HEYWARD, Braves.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jason Heyward as the Rookie of the Year.)

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
OZZIE GUILLEN, White Sox
The White Sox were 8 games under .500 and heading towards a lost season. Guillen stayed focused and next thing you know, the White Sox are in first at the All Star Break and has a pitching staff that can absorb the loss of Jake Peavy.

In the running:
RON WASHINGTON, Rangers. TERRY FRANCONA, Red Sox. JOE MADDON, Rays. JIM LEYLAND, Tigers. MIKE SCIOSCIA, Angels.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Joe Maddon as the Manager of the Year.)

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
DUSTY BAKER, Reds
The Reds were supposed to be also rans who were going to fade in June. Instead they are in first place at the All Star Break and just need to outpace St. Louis in a two team race.

In the running:
BOBBY COX, Braves. JIM TRACY, Rockies. BUD BLACK, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Dusty Baker as the Manager of the Year.)

AL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR

VLADIMIR GUERRERO, Rangers
Think the Angels could use his bat right around now? He's batting .319 with 20 homers and 75 RBI for you old school baseball followers. He's posting a .919 OPS for you new school kids. And is forming a dynamic 1-2 punch with Josh Hamilton in Arlington.

In the running:
VERNON WELLS, Blue Jays. ALEX RIOS, White Sox. TY WIGGINTON, Orioles.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Vernon Wells as the Comeback Player of the Year.)

NL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
TIM HUDSON, Braves
He spent most of 2009 recovering from Tommy John surgery and having people wonder if the one time ace of the A's was done. Instead he became an All Star with a 9-4 record at the break, a 2.30 ERA and a 61/43 strikeout to walk ratio.

In the running:
SCOTT ROLEN, Reds. LIVAN HERNANDEZ, Nationals. CARLOS SILVA, Cubs. BARRY ZITO, Giants.

BIGGEST BUST IN THE AL:
MILTON BRADLEY, Mariners
When the Mariners brought in Cliff Lee to be a 1-2 punch for the pennant with King Felix, someone thought that Bradley would somehow be the center piece to the offense. He's been nothing short of a PR disaster, had to leave the team and his OPS is 1/3 lower than it was in 2008, his lone full season of note.

In the running:
JOSH BECKETT, Red Sox. JOBA CHAMBERLAIN, Yankees. CHONE FIGGINS, Mariners.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Josh Beckett as the biggest bust in the AL)

BIGGEST BUST IN THE NL
CARLOS ZAMBRANO, Cubs
The nominal ace of the Cubs had to get his head straight as a middle reliever. Then his dugout tirade made him suspended from the club. The Cubs would deal him for a flat can of Diet 7 Up.

In the running:
AKI IWAMURA, Pirates. ARAMIS RAMIREZ, Cubs. MARK DeROSA, Giants.


So let's start the second half up...
And I'll check in around Labor Day. Hopefully there will be more Red Sox in these categories (except Biggest Bust.)

Strasburg makes a run at Rookie of the Year

I've written a bunch about the NL Cy Young race this year. And while at this point Ubaldo Jimenez has the lead, if he stumbles, the likes of Adam Wainwright, Roy Halladay, Tim Lincecum, Chris Carpenter, Johan Santana, Josh Johnson, Matt Cain, Mike Pelfrey and Barry Zito all look like they'll put up numbers that could have WON the Cy a few years ago.

The National League is filled with ace pitchers and they are also showing a great crop of rookie stars as well.

The NL Rookie of the Year race was already crowded.

Jason Heyward, Mike Leake, Ike Davis, David Freese and Jamie Garcia have all made big contributions to their contending teams.

And recently promoted Buster Posey and Mike Stanton both look like impact bats.

But HO-LEE COW!
Stephen Strasburg is somehow actually EXCEEDING expectations.

Forget that his 2 wins. His ERA is 1.86, he's throwing 7 innings a game.
He has 32 strikeouts and only 5 walks in 19 1/3 innings.

Now granted he has faced the Pirates, Indians and White Sox... so he hasn't exactly faced the best teams yet.

But what if he keeps this up?

He might not only win the Rookie of the Year, but he might be mentioned in the Cy Young race as well.

How good is Strasburg so far?

Obama had to go see him last night... even with all stuff going on in the world... and who can blame him?

Oh I am sure someone will.

Jimenez vs. Mauer ... YOU WOULDN'T WANT THAT Interleague Foes?

JUST as I finished typing my last entry about Jimenez pitching against the Twins, Joe Mauer came up to the plate.

The front runner of the 2010 National League Cy Young Award faced off against the defending American League MVP.

The crowd loved it... taking pictures of the match up.

It is PRECISELY the unorthodox head to head match ups that Interleague Play has in mind.

Mauer lined out in a bang bang play where the runner at first was doubled up.

Jimenez goes 8 strong with 1 run... ups his record to 13-1 and has a 1.15 ERA now. And Twin fans got to see on a beautiful June day a match up they wouldn't normally see.

Ohhhh. So bad for baseball!

Price wins... it's your move Lester

I've written a lot about the NL Cy Young race this year... but not too much about the American League

It hasn't been as sexy a race with the Jimenez's, Halladays, Wainwrights, Lincecums et al dominating.

Right now I'd say two of the front runners for the AL are David Price, who pitched Tampa to an easy win over Toronto last night and leads the AL in wins and ERA, and Jon Lester, the AL Pitcher of the Month in May (based on his 5-0 record in May with a 1.84 ERA) and has the lowest batting average against in the bigs. And since starting the season 0-2 with a 8.44 ERA over his first three starts he is 7-0 with 1.28 ERA.

He goes tonight.

Yeah I know Phil Hughes, Jeff Niemann, Andy Pettitte and Clay Buchholz are all candidates as well but Lester and Price can separate themselves from the pack.

Let's hope Lester gets no hitter #2.

Taking stock of the first 1/3 of the season

Memorial Day and the beginning of June take place roughly at the 1/3 mark of the baseball season.

There's still a lot of baseball to be played, but enough games are in the bank that we can start to analyze which teams look like contenders and which players are having really special years.

And we here at Sully Baseball are going to take a look at who the playoff teams are and who are the award winners with 2/3 of the season left to go.

There are some surprise playoff teams and at this writing some startling omissions. And the NL Rookie of the Year vote might change completely if Buster Posey and Stephen Strasburg have anything to say about it.

Let's see where we are.

If the playoffs started today…

AL East Champion Tampa Bay Rays
Would have home field advantage over
AL West Champion Oakland A’s

AL Central Champion Minnesota Twins
Would have home field advantage over
AL Wild Card New York Yankees

Toronto Blue Jays, Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers would all be 3 games or fewer out of a playoff spot

NL West Champion San Diego Padres
Would have home field advantage over
NL Wild Card Cincinnati Reds

NL Central Champion St. Louis Cardinals
Would have home field advantage over
NL East Champion Atlanta Braves

Cardinals would be the Division Champ on the basis of their head to head record with the Reds.

Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies would all be 3 games or fewer out of a playoff spot.

AL MVP:
MIGUEL CABRERA, Tigers
Leads the league with 48 RBI. Also leads the league in slugging. Second in homers and OPS. Third in batting average and on base percentage.

In the running:
JUSTIN MORNEAU, Twins. KEVIN YOUKILIS, Red Sox. ROBINSON CANO, Yankees. EVAN LONGORIA, Rays. VLADIMIR GUERRERO, Rangers.

NL MVP:
ALBERT PUJOLS, Cardinals
Have you noticed than even with his “slump” he’s 1st in homers, 3rd in OPS, 3rd in on base percentage, 5th in RBI, and 6th in hits? Plus he’s batting .310 in his “disappointing first 2 months.” He’s the MVP until someone proves otherwise.

In the running:
ANDRE ETHIER, Dodgers. JASON HEYWARD, Braves. JOEY VOTTO, Reds.

AL CY YOUNG:
JON LESTER, Red Sox
Lowest batting average against. Second in strikeouts. Sub 3.00 ERA after terrible start. Tied for third in wins, 1 behind the co-leaders.

In the running:
DAVID PRICE, Rays. JEFF NIEMANN, Rays. PHIL HUGHES, Yankees.

NL CY YOUNG:
UBALDO JIMENEZ, Rockies
In a season full of dominating ace performances, his 10-1 record with a 0.78 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP (and a no hitter thrown in for good measure) make Jimenez the winner at the 1/3 mark.

In the running:
ROY HALLADAY, Phillies. TIM LINCECUM, Giants. ADAM WAINWRIGHT, Cardinals.

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
MITCH TALBOT, Indians.
6-3 record for the lowly Tribe. 3.73 ERA and a complete game victory in his second start this season.

In the running:
WADE DAVIS, Rays. AUSTIN JACKSON, Tigers. BRENNAN BOESCH, Tigers.

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
JASON HEYWARD, Braves.
He’s all that he has been hyped up to be. Hits for power, for solid average and has a flair for the dramatic.

In the running:
MIKE LEAKE, Reds. IKE DAVIS, Mets. DAVID FREESE, Cardinals. JAIME GARCIA, Cardinals.

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
JOE MADDON, Rays.
Guiding the young and talented Rays back to the top of the most brutal division in baseball and has the best record in the game.

In the running:
BOB GEREN, Athletics. RON WASHINGTON, Rangers. RON GARDENHIRE, Twins. CITO GASTON, Blue Jays. JOE GIRARDI, Yankees.

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
DUSTY BAKER, Reds.
Has the Reds tied for first place going into June and doing so with solid pitching and clutch hitting. Don’t wear out those young arms!!!

In the running:
BUD BLACK, Padres. BOBBY COX, Braves. JOE TORRE, Dodgers. BRUCE BOCHY, Giants.

AL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
VERNON WELLS, Blue Jays
Unwanted and untradeable a year ago, now has a .301 average, a .956 OPS, leads the league in doubles and has 13 homers, 2 shy of his total last year over 158 games!

In the running:
VLADIMIR GUERRERO, Rangers. ALEX RIOS, White Sox. TY WIGGINGTON, Orioles. ERVIN SANTANA, Angels.

NL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
CARLOS SILVA, Cubs
Has given the Cubs a sparkling 7-0 record with a respectable 3.12 ERA… and the Cubs would have taken a can of Sprite for Milton Bradley!

In the running:
BARRY ZITO, Giants. TIM HUDSON, Braves. LIVAN HERNANDEZ, Nationals.

BIGGEST BUST IN THE AL:
JOSH BECKETT, Red Sox
Signs a 5 year contract extension and wins a single game and has an ERA of 7.29 before he lands on the DL.

In the running:
CHONE FIGGINS, Mariners. AARON HILL, Blue Jays. GRADY SIZEMORE, Indians. MILTON BRADLEY, Mariners

BIGGEST BUST IN THE NL:
CARLOS LEE, Astros
Low average. Bad on base percentage. Lackluster power. All for $19 million!

In the running:
MARK DeROSA, Giants. ARAMIS RAMIREZ, Cubs. AKI IWAMURA, Pirates. EDWIN JACKSON, Diamondbacks.


So in less than an hour it will be June in California (as it is already June on the East Coast.)

We'll take stock again at the All Star Break (the unofficial half way mark) and at Labor Day (the home stretch.)

It will be interesting to see if the Phillies, Red Sox, Dodgers and Angels are still on the outside looking in!