Two Month Awards

With nearly two months in the books, here are my picks, so far, for some of baseball's most (and least) coveted awards...

MVP, AL: Magglio Ordonez (.356, 12 HR, 47 RBI, 43 R)
This is a tough pick, considering what A-Rod's done so far. But consider this: Magglio is hitting about 50 points higher, leads the majors in RBI, and he's the reason the Tigers are good, plus A-Rod slowed down a lot in May. Also receiving votes: Alex Rodriguez, Torii Hunter, Vlad Guerrero.

MDP, AL: Michael Young (.239, 4 HR, 25 RBI, 28 R)
For a second straight month, a Texas Ranger wins this honor. The difference is, Young could have won this award after his miserable April too, whereas last month's winner, Mark Teixeira, is on fire. Also receiving votes: Manny Ramirez, Vernon Wells, Bobby Abreu.

MVP, NL: Jose Reyes (.312, 2 HR, 24 RBI, 39 R, 28 SB)
JR takes it home for a second month and with good reason- he's still the table-setter on one of baseball's best teams, and now that Delgado and Wright are hitting, he's going to score more and more runs. He's also on pace to steal more bases than anyone else in about 15 years. Also receiving votes: JJ Hardy, Hanley Ramirez, Jimmy Rollins (how about NL shortstops?).

MDP, NL: Garrett Atkins (.220, 3 HR, 19 RBI)
A year ago, he hit .329 and drove in 120. Now, he's hitting 100 points lower, and is on pace to drive in half as many runs. He tore it up after the All-Star Break last year though, so there's still hope. Also receiving votes: Alfonso Soriano, Lance Berkman, Ryan Howard, Andruw Jones.

Cy Young, AL: Dan Haren (5-2, 1.70 ERA, 0.89 WHIP)
In his 4 no decisions, Haren has an ERA of 2.42, 29 K and just 9 walks. Realistically, he should be 8-2 and if he was, he'd be leading the league in ERA, leading baseball in WHIP, and tied for the league lead in wins. Also receiving votes: John Lackey, Josh Beckett, Johan Santana.

Cy Anora, AL: Mariano Rivera (1-3, 5.94 ERA, 3 Saves)
Some of this isn't his fault. The Yankees are bad, so he isn't getting many save opportunities. In fact, if it wasn't for May 3rd, where he saved both ends of a double header at Texas, Mo would still be sitting on that one save. His ERA this month is an even 2.00, and he has 10 K's with just one walk. The Yankees just need to give him the chance to be himself. Also receiving votes: Scott Kazmir, Curt Schilling.

CY Young, NL: Jake Peavy (7-1, 1.47 ERA, 85 K, 0.93 WHIP)
This one isn't even close. Peavy could also receive votes for MVP, he's been that good. He had four straight 10-K games, and if you take away his 4 earned over 5 1/3 April 19th, his ERA drops down to a silly 1.06. Much like Reyes, I feel like an injury is the only thing that's going to slow him down at this point. Also receiving votes: Oliver Perez, John Smoltz, Francisco Cordero.

Cy Anora, NL: Carlos Zambrano (5-4, 5.24 ERA, 1.49 WHIP)
Last month's winner is also this month's winner. Control problems (32 walks) and gopher balls (a league-leading 13 homers) have been Zambrano's biggest enemies so far. Also receiving votes: Dontrelle Willis, Brandon Webb, Aaron Harang.

ROY, AL: Daisuke Matsuzaka (7-2, 4.43 ERA, 64 K)
Four straight wins gives Dice-K the slight advantage over his fellow countryman out in the bullpen. There's no question he's been helped out by the Sox offense, but then again, they weren't asking him to be a number one or number two. Also receiving votes: Hideki Okajima, Joakim Soria, Elijah Dukes.

ROY, NL: Hunter Pence (.365, 4 HR, 18 RBI)
This race is still wide open, but thanks to a slowing-down Josh Hamilton, and a great first 100 AB's, Pence is my guy so far. Mark Reynolds may make things interesting as the season progresses, though. Also receiving votes: Josh Hamilton, Chris Young, Troy Tulowitzki, Chris Sampson.

I Think Jayson Stark Is Overrated

Jayson Stark is out with his list of the ten most overrated active players (for that matter, he also lists his ten most underrated active players, but I'm going to focus on the former) in an effort to promote his new book, which, after reading his columns, I won't be purchasing. Here's why.

In his overrated piece, he lists players like Barry Zito, JD Drew, Juan Pierre, Bobby Abreu, and Alfonso Soriano...no big arguments there, even though it's not Zito's fault the Giants were willing to pay as much as they did for him. He's still 38 games over .500 for his career, guys are hitting .235 against him, he has a 3.60 ERA, and he's 232 for 232 in making scheduled starts. He's just a rich guy having a bad year, and thus, an easy target for JS.

I do, however, take issue with some of the other guys on his list, like Andruw Jones. Again, another superstar off to a pretty slow start. But when you say you're out to list the most overrated, active players, I don't see how a guy who's won 9 straight gold gloves in the outfield, has 348 career homers, 315 doubles, 1600 hits, and just turned 30, qualifies for that list. Stark mentions his strikeout totals. May I ask, who the hell cares? AJ has never pretended to be a high average, low strikeout guy. In fact, his typical season looks something like this: .265, 34, 103, and a gold glove (and he's played in at least 150 games for 10 straight seasons). To me, that's consistently solid, not overrated.

Another one on his list is Brian Giles. Stark busts his chops for not being a power hitter any more. Well Jayson, that sometimes happens when you turn 35 and move from a very hitter friendly home park, to a very pitcher friendly home park. This is a guy who's still had 30+ doubles for 8 straight years, more walks than strikeouts for 8 straight years, finishes up right around 100 runs scored (on some pretty light hitting teams I might add) and owns a career on base percentage above .400. Is he in the twilight of a good career? Yes. Is he overrated? No.

Next on his list is Richie Sexson. Who, besides Stark, thinks Sexson is overrated? Does anyone really think this is the year Sexson wins a batting title? Yes, he makes a lot of money and yes, he's off to a bad start (which seems to be Stark's formula for this, even though he swears several times, it's not). But he's had two years of 40+, 120+, and he's had 5 years of 30+, 100+. He's a prototypical, modern day power hitter. Lots of extra base hits, lots of RBI, lots of strikeouts, a few injury problems, and a sub .275 batting average.

And the last two players on his list are simply baffling- Bob Wickman and Jeff Suppan. When was the last time you saw a kid at the ballpark with a "Wickman 28" jersey on? When was the last time either of these guys made the cover of Sports Illustrated? When was the last time a casual baseball fan even knew who these guys were? In my mind, you earn the title of "overrated" when you are perceived to be much better than you are. Wickman is 38, he's appeared in nearly 800 games, and he has more than 250 career saves (which Stark says is baseball's most overrated stat, even though since 1982, only one World Series winner failed to have at least one pitcher record 20 games- the '01 Diamondbacks...you can't tell me having a lights-out stopper in the 9th isn't critical). Wickman shoved for the Braves last year, and he has average stuff at best, making his longevity all teh more impressive. He belongs on the all overachiever list, not most overrated. As for Suppan, Stark uses the overpaid logic (again), saying he used his good postseason to cash in (like he's the first player ever to do that). I don't think anyone would call him a #1, or #2 starter. He's a solid, middle-to-back-of-the-rotation guy, who's helped solidify an already good Milwaukee staff this year. Stark, mix in a clue.

While he was busy naming those guys, he left out perfectly good active, overrated players like...

Javier Vazquez - 5 games below .500 for career, 4.34 career ERA, never won 17 games in season, makes $13M

Jason Kendall - can't hit for power, can't hit for average, doesn't throw anybody out, makes $13M

Shawn Green - hasn't hit 30 homers, or driven in 100 since 2002, finished above .300 once, yet a starting corner outfielder

Kelvim Escobar - been waiting for his breakout year for 10 years, never won 15 in a season, lots of arm problems

Adrian Beltre - had one good season ('04), hadn't sniffed 30 or 100 before, and hasn't since

I'm sure there are others. I'm also sure I've made my point.

Worst Free Agent Ever?

I have to think Carl Pavano ranks fairly high on that list and I'm not just talking exclusively about baseball players. I'm talking about pro sports free agents. Worst ever.

This is a guy who's really had one good season in 10 years (2004, go figure, his free agent walk year). Now, his season is definitely over and his career with the Yanks might be as well. The end result of this is, New York might as well have taken the $39,950,000 they planned to pay him over four years, traded it in for 159,800,000 quarters and flushed every last one down the toilets of Yankee Stadium because, in the words of comedian Lewis Black, every so often, the toilets will back up, AND YOU'LL BE A WINNER!

If his career in pinstripes is truly over, it means Carl Pavanothealthy will have thrown 111 1/3 innings for 399,500 Benjamins. And thanks to ESPN's game log feature, I can calculate his price per pitch over that span. It's hilarious because it's true. Are you ready? Take a deep breath. It's $23,445. PER PITCH! That kind of makes Roger Clemens (OMFQ as he's known in my home) look like a bargain.

And it's not like all those pitches were good either. In fact, of his 1,704 pitches, 594 were balls and those wayward pitches don't come cheap. Here some Yankee fans thought Pavano didn't have any balls, when all along they were paying about $14 million dollars for them.

Technically, in his Bronx days, Pavano only threw 969 pitches that were strikes and not base hits. The Boss paid $22.7 million for those good pitches.

We can also do it by price per out. That comes to $119,611. It doesn't matter how you look at it, the Yanks got screwed and most baseball fans love it. I challenge any of my readers to find a free agent who was a worse bargain.

About A Quarter Of The Way Home...

...in the 2007 baseball season, and there's some downright goofy stuff going on. For example:

-The New York Yankees are on pace to win 71 games. If that happens, it would be their lowest win total since 1994. And guess what? There was a strike that season, so the Yanks only played 113 games! The last full season in which New York won so few games was 1991. A 22-year-old Bernie Williams made his big league debut and Derek Jeter was a junior in high school.

-Speaking of the Yanks, Mariano Rivera is on pace to save 12 games. That would break Mo's streak of at least 25 saves for 10 straight years.

-Speaking of saves, Francisco Cordero is on pace to save 60 games this season! That would break Bobby Thigpen's record of 57 set back in 1990. That's the good news for the Brew Crew. The bad news is, the year Thigpen broke the record, the White Sox won 94 games but finished 9 games back of the Oakland A's and missed the playoffs. Of course, that was before the wild card.

-The Brewers have been on a great run, and when it comes to scoring runs so has Hanley Ramirez. If he keeps it up, the second year fish will touch home 147 times this season. It sounds like a lot, and it is...just not in the grand scheme. 147 runs would tie him for 57th on the all-time single-season list, a full 45 runs behind Billy Hamilton of the 1894 Philadelphia Phillies (who somehow scored 192 times in 129 games...basically a run and a half a game). To Ramirez's credit, 147 would be the most any player's scored in one year since Jeff Bagwell's 152 in 2000.

-While we're talking about runs, Jose Reyes has stopped running a little bit, but he's still on target to swipe 96 bags this season. It's been 20 years since somebody stole 100 bags (Vince Coleman, 109) and it's been 19 years since somebody topped 90 (Rickey Henderson, 93).

-Barry Bonds never used to run like that, but he did have some speed. Now, he just walks (and hits homeruns, of course). He's on pace to receive 170 free passes this season. And he turns 43 in 2 months. If he gets 170, he'll tie Babe Ruth for 4th on the single-season list behind Barry Bonds '01, Barry Bonds '02, and Barry Bonds '04. Interestingly, Luke Appling holds the record for most walks in a season after age 40. He took 121 base on balls for the 1949 Chicago White Sox, at age 42. Bonds is number two on that list, with his 115 last year. Willie Mays is third with 112 and Darrell Evans is 4th with an even 100. So only 4 times in history has a 40-year-old walked 100 or more times in a season. Bonds needs another 56 this year to be the only 40-year-old to appear on that list twice.

-Adam Dunn is on pace to strikeout 219 times. That would demolish his old mark of 195 in 2004 (an all-time record).

-Jake Peavy is well on his way to a 267 strikeout season on the mound. That would be the most since Randy Johnson's 290 in 2004.

-And just for fun...JJ Hardy's numbers at the end of the season if he keeps it up? .316, 53, 151

A (Farns)Worthy Teammate?

Yankees set-up man Kyle Farnsworth thinks Roger Clemens should be with the team all the time, even though his contract says he doesn't have to be there if he's not pitching. He's not the first person to criticize that part of the Clemens deal either. I was having this discussion the other night and I really couldn't think of another sport where the notion of "show up sometimes" would be acceptable. But then again, in no other sport can someone participate in 20% of his team's games (35 starts in 162 games) and be considered an invaluable part of his organization (I also realize Clemens won't make anywhere close to 35 starts, it will be more like 20-25, or 12-15% of Yankee games in 2007).

My opinion from the start has always been, if the Yankees will let him do it, why would he say no? The Yanks (9.5 games back with 123 to go) need him a lot more than he needs them. But I wonder how it plays out in the New York media if The Rocket is average, and still doesn't go on road trips if he's not pitching? He's earning a million bucks a start. Fans don't want 3 earned over 6 and a no-decision. Let's not forget, Clemens was God in Houston. The home-town boy could do no wrong. But I guess if he leaves with a lead and Farnsworth blows it, Yankee fans will be able to blame somebody else.

Also, apologies for recent lack of posts. Please enjoy this photo of Jessica Alba as compensation.

Shocker

Roy Halla-Day-Spa is on the shelf for 4-6 weeks with apendicitis. That's so odd considering his track record of healty and durability.

Furthermore, in an actual surprising development, Jake Peavy struck out 10 batters for the 4th straight game. Granted, his arm will probably fall off soon, but man...that's impressive.

O, Crap...Part Deux

First, it was sock-gate. Now Rick Dempsey is joking about domestic violence. Yes friends it's been a long season already in Baltimore, and it's only going to get worse.

Nicknames

Baseball is, and has been full of them for years. From "The Bambino" to "Hammerin' Hank" to "The Say Hey Kid" to "Big Mac" and "The Iron Man," everyone has a favorite. So do I...as of tonight.

Watching Yankees highlights with my wife, who is not one to mince words, the topic quickly switched from Matt DeSalvo's impressive debut (he's the 10th Yankee starter in 30 games, a new record) to Roger Clemens. She wondered which new pitcher would get the ax to make room for Clemens, once he's ready to join the team. But she did not refer to him as "Clemens," or "The Rocket," or by any other name you or I have ever used, or thought of. No, she called him "Old-Man-Fake-Quitter," singlehandedly doling out the most fantastic nickname the game has ever known.

Amanda, thank you.

By the way, OMFQ (that's how I'll be referring to Clemens from now on) is already getting some criticism for not traveling with the team on road games. David Wells (the more outspoken of the two) and Greg Maddux say they wouldn't ever want a clause that says that.

O, Boy

The Baltimore Orioles' 14-game, early-season-litmus-test is officially in the books. And the test results aren't looking good, folks.

They dropped both games at home against the A's and Red Sox, got swept by the Tigers, and went 3-4 in a home-and-home against the Indians for an overall record of 3-11. To make matters worse, they'll likely be without promising lefty Adam Loewen for the rest of the season. He has a stress fracture in his left elbow. And shocker, Jaret Wright is also hurt. His perpetually sore right shoulder has him back on the DL. His season is also in jeopardy.

So where does that leave the O's? Well, to avoid a 10th straight losing season, Baltimore needs to go 68-62 the rest of the way with a rotation of: Bedard, Cabrera, Trachsel, Phil In The Blank, and Phil In The Blank, Jr. The Yankees are starting to win, the Sox are starting to hit, and the D-Rays have a few decent starters and (gasp!) a closer. It's not even mid-May, and the wheels are falling off the proverbial cart in Charm City, already.

Rookie Of The Where?

I know we're just starting the 6th week of the season, but man this year's crop of rookies has been poor at best, so far. Maybe it seems so bad because last year there were so many impact rookies (Hanley Ramirez, Zimmerman, Uggla, Verlander, Francisco Liriano, Markakis, Zumaya, etc.), but either way, if the voting was today, I'm not sure how it would turn out.

In the AL, it would probably be Boston's other Japanese pitcher, lefty set-up man Hideki Okajima. He has more strikeouts than innings pitched, 8 holds and ERA under 0.60. Closer Joakim Soria from KC is also in the running at this point. Guys who aren't in the running yet are the ones we thought would be. Dice-K has been inconsistent, Phil Hughes is hurt, Kei Igawa has been horrible, and out of this immensely talented group of position players: Delmon Young, Elijah Dukes, Alex Gordon, and Travis Buck, not one is hitting .250.

In the NL, I think feel-good-story Josh Hamilton is in the lead so far, but he hasn't had much competition. Arizona's outfield duo of Quentin and Young has struggled. So has Rockie Rookie Troy Tulowitski and San Diego's Kevin Kouzmanoff (mightily). As far as arms, Jason Hirsh has been good but not great for Colorado, as has Chris Sampson for Houston, and Henry Owens is doing a good Soria impersonation for Florida. As a side note, Tim Lincecum (or as one of my friends likes to call him, Tim WINCE-cum) didn't do much to garner support during his debut Sunday night (4 earned with 5 walks over 4 1/3 against the Phillies).

Long story short, 5 weeks in, and the race is wide open in both leagues.

A Bronx Bombshell

The Rocket is heading back to New York, much to the chagrin of Red Sox (and probably Astros fans).

Here's what I find interesting. It's May 6, the Yankees are 5 1/2 games back of the Red Sox, with more than 130 left to go. There's no way New York's starting rotation will be : Wang, Mussina, Clemens, Pettitte, and Igawa/Hughes when they host Boston, May 21-23. But they might have all the pieces in place for the series June 1-3 in Boston. Hughes' hamstring injury isn't as bad as they thought, and Clemens already says he's in pretty good shape. After that series, the two teams don't play again until the second half of the season, when they hook up just 6 more times (3 in New York and 3 in Boston).

This really makes the month of May critical for New York. So far, they've won 5 of 6, after going 9-14 in April. If they can keep Boston within striking distance, the games in June and in the second half could determine the division winner. But if they go into another funk, or suffer more pitching staff injuries, Clemens will earn $4.5 million dollars a month to help the Yankees play out the schedule in September. Either way, it looks like George Steinbrenner isn't going down without a fight.

Scranton Area Paper Company, Dunder Mifflin, Apologizes To Valued Client; Some Companies Still Know How Business Is Done

This post has absolutely nothing to do with that. I just always wanted to have that be a headline for one of my stories ever since I saw it on "The Office."

Okay, here's today's "how about..."

Last night in Arizona, Julio Franco took Randy Johnson deep for a two-run home run in the top of the second inning. Franco is 48 years, 254 days old. Johnson is 43 years, 236 days old. Combined, they are 92 years, 125 days old, making them the oldest pitcher/hitter combination ever involved in a home run in major league history.

When Julio Franco was born in 1958, gas was 24 cents a gallon, Dwight Eisenhower was President, our country was still segregated, Ernie Banks hit a big-league-best 47 home runs, and Jose Reyes' life wouldn't start for another 24 years.

Dicey-K

He started tonight's game by walking the bases loaded. He gave up a 5 spot in the top of the first to Seattle, and gave up 7 earned before his night was over after 5 (while walking 5 and hitting a batter). But Manny and the Sox bailed him out and they ended up winning 8-7.

This is the difference between New York and Boston. In the Bronx, everybody would be talking about what an overpaid bum Matsuzaka is, already (see Irabu, Hideki). But in Boston, they won so who cares?

For the record, after 6 starts, Dice-K is 3-2 with a 5.45 ERA, 39 K's and 15 BB in 38 IP and a 1.32 WHIP. His first three starts were great (even though he went 1-2), and his last three have been pretty bad (even though he won twice). I hate to say I told you he's going to have an up and down season...but I did, so I will.

Sleepers

Sometimes, I wonder why I buy a fantasy baseball magazine every year, thumb through to the "Sleepers" section and make careful mental notes. Almost every single time, the idiots who write these things are wrong, like so far with these 10 guys...

10. Mike Piazza (.282, 1, 8)
I'll admit, I've been had by the Piazza Lure in more than one league this season. He can DH full time. He'll be playing in smaller parks. How can he not be good? Well, he hasn't been bad, but at this time of the season, just about everybody on waivers has a homer and 8 RBI. Now Piazza's going to be on the shelf for a month with a bad shoulder.

9. Matt Murton (.298, 0, 5)
He'll have no trouble beating out Cliff Floyd for starting duties in left field, right? Right? But he showed so much promise last year...c'mon!

8. Daniel Cabrera (1-3, 4.50 ERA)
You know we keep waiting, and waiting, and waiting for his breakout year. I know it's still very early. But if you're a D-Cab owner right now, admit it...you're not liking the direction he's currently headed. His control is getting worse, not better (5 walks or more in his last two starts). That's leading to high pitch counts (he's averaging 111 per start) and that's leading to early exits (he's averaging 6 1/3 IP per start). That's not a formula that will help your WHIP, ERA, or win total.

7. Mark Teahen (.269, 3, 12)
The other guy to get from the Kansas City Royals (in addition to Alex Gordon, who's been terrible) is, at least starting. And he does have eligibility at third and in the outfield. But with his numbers so far, who cares?

6. David Bush (2-2, 6.23 ERA)
I haven't given up on DB just yet, despite his sky-high ERA. His control is still great (5 BB in 30 IP), and his ERA is bad because of two bad starts. Still, people (and by people, I mean me) were expecting a win total in the teens, a sub 3.50 ERA and a WHIP around 1.20. He has a lot of work to do to get there.

5. Ervin Santana (2-4, 5.50 ERA)
Similar story as Bush. Young, talented arm on a team that should be good. Santana's had some control problems and two bad starts as well. We'll see what he does from here.

4. Coco Crisp (.250, 0, 7)
Most were willing to give him a Mulligan for his injury-plagued 2006. But what's the excuse this year? He's in a great lineup. There are always guys on base in front of him. And he doesn't have to hit lead-off. But he's still not producing. He needs to find 2004 and 2005 again, and he needs to do it soon.

3. Nick Markakis (.239, 3, 15)
Everybody was talking about what a hot second half he had and how he was poised for a dynamite year in an improving O's lineup. Sorry sports fans, it hasn't happened yet.

2. Josh Barfield (.169, 1, 9)
Most of the player capsules read: Up-and-coming middle infielder with 20-20 potential and a big league pedigree is on the verge of a breakout year, now that he's headed to one of the most potent lineups in baseball. To quote Borat, "He is not on the verge of a breakout year!"

1. Erik Bedard (3-2, 6.09 ERA)
I heard some of the announcers on MASN say he was a sleeper Cy Young candidate on opening day. Eeeeh. There's no questioning his stuff (42 K in 34 IP), but for whatever reason he just isn't dominating. He's given up at least 4 earned in 4 of his 6 starts. That's not going to work.

While everybody was going after those guys, here are the 10 we should have had our eyes on.

10. Aaron Hill
9. Kelly Johnson
8. Rich Hill
7. Al Reyes
6. Adrian Gonzalez
5. Barry Bonds
4. BJ Upton
3. John Maine
2. Tim Hudson
1. Ian Kinsler

You Can Make That...

1-9 in their last 10.

Shocker, the O's jumped out to a 2-1 lead early this afternoon, only to give up unanswered runs in the 5th and 6th. Steve Trachsel pitched his tail off, but Baltimore could only manage 6 singles and an RBI double all afternoon. They had a man on second with one out, down a run, and the top of the order coming up in the 7th and couldn't get him home.

They also went 0-6 with a walk and 3 K's in the 8th and 9th.

They need to go 70-64 (.522) the rest of the way home to top .500 this season. I'll go on the record right now saying I don't think they can do it.

O, Crap

This post is primarily in response to this and to this. At one point, I too predicted the Orioles would be a decent team, capable of breaking a decade-long-streak of losing seasons. But after their recent stretch of awful games against playoff contenders, I'm starting to wonder if I may have spoken too soon.

Since getting swept in unimpressive fashion by the Minnesota Twins (a playoff team last year, and a team that is, and will be in the mix this year) to open the season, Baltimore won 11 of 15 (so what if they were against the Royals, Blue Jays and Devil Rays among others?). At that point, they were 11-7 and looking like a team that could pitch, hit, and, most importantly, finish games.

But lying ahead was a critical stretch of games- an early-season litmus test against more teams like the Twins. These would give O's fans and the rest of the league a true sense of what this club is made of. Nine games into the current 14 game stretch, they are, as Brian Roberts put it, finding "a way to lose every night."

They are 1-8 in this stretch. They aren't hitting particularly well. They aren't pitching particularly well. And their bullpen, which was so good, has been hittable.

What's worse and perhaps most notable is how they're not finishing off games. In the last 9 games, the Orioles have yet to hold a team scoreless after the fifth. Not once. In that same time, they've allowed 28 runs in 32 innings from the 6th on. You ARE NOT GOING TO WIN if you consistently let teams (a) come back or (b) add to a small lead, late.

Now, the O's are 3 games below .500, with one against the Tigers and then four against Cleveland. They're in third place in a division where Boston still isn't really hitting and the Yankees are an injured mess. I expect those two anomalies to correct themselves. As for Baltimore, I'm not as optimistic.

Signs Your Team Is Doomed

Phil Hughes, welcome to the club. I really think the Yankees need to fire whoever's responsible for their pre-game stretching routine, or at least change it up.

Although if I'm Hughes, I'm not sure what I'd rather do...pitch great and get hurt, or pitch so-so and be able to make my next start.

Monthly Awards

April's in the books, so let's dole out some awards, because there have been some simply amazing, and simply miserable performances thus far. So without further ado...

MVP, AL: Alex Rodriguez (.355, 14 HR, 34 RBI, 27 Runs)
He has cooled off, (3 for his last 18) but that's only after being on absolute, white-hot, fire. This may be one of the best single months ever in big league history. To put it into perspective, he's on pace to hit 99 home runs, drive in 240, score 190 times, and of course hit over .350. That's after a month, not after a week. Also Receiving Votes: Ian Kinsler, BJ Upton, Vlad Guerrero, Magglio Ordonez

MDP (most disappointing), AL: Mark Teixeira (.231, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 14 Runs)
Another slow start for Tex, and his Tex-as Rangers for that matter. The 6 RBI is a hard total to imagine in that lineup, considering he had 91 AB's. What also concerns me is, at least last year when his power was slow to develop early in the year, at least he hit .293 in April. But he's a second-half player and has been his whole career, so just hang in there. Also Receiving Votes: Manny Ramirez, Michael Young (ouch Texas), Ichiro, Hideki Matsui

MVP, NL: Jose Reyes (.356, 26 Runs, 18 RBI, 17 SB)
Absolute superstar, who came into the season with enormous expectations and is somehow exceeding them. He already has a pair of 4-hit and three 3-hit games under his belt. And in that lineup, there's no reason to think his run, or steal totals should fall off. Oh by the way, he also has 9 doubles, 5 triples, and 2 home runs. He turns 24 in June and may be the best player in the game, under 25. Also Receiving Votes: Jimmy Rollins, Carlos Beltran, Hanley Ramirez, Miguel Cabrera

MDP, NL: Alfonso Soriano (.270, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 9 Runs, 2 SB)
And you thought Teixeira was bad. April 14...7th inning...Cubs hosting the Reds...Soriano gets an infield hit...Cliff Floyd scores. Why is this significant? Because it was Soriano's only RBI in April! He has been a complete bust so far on a team that is full of them. I know a lot of people were predicting he'd flirt with 40/40 again, hitting in a better lineup, in a more hitter-friendly park. At this point, 30/30 seems like a stretch. Also Receiving Votes: Ryan Howard, David Wright, Lance Berkman, Albert Pujols

Cy Young, AL: Roy Halladay (4-0, 2.28 ERA, 33 K, 0.89 WHIP)
He's 6 for 6 in quality starts. He already has 2 complete games under his belt (including a 10 inning outing against Detroit) and he should be at least 5-0, possibly 6-0. Here's what worries me for the rest of the season. Halladay has always been a "great month guy." But injuries have derailed him more than once. He's only posted 200+ innings in back to back years one time in 8 full seasons, prior to 2007. And he threw 220 a year ago. Might be a good "sell high" guy right now. Also Receiving Votes: Josh Beckett, Dan Haren, John Lackey

Cy Anora, AL: Mariano Rivera (1-2, 10.57 ERA, 1 Save)
To put his awful April into perspective, Mo's already allowed 9 earned runs. Last season, he allowed 15, and didn't allow his 9th until June 17. Yes, the Yankees starting pitching has been atrocious, so he hasn't been afforded too many chances to close out games. But the few times he's actually had the chance, he's just 1 for 3. I have to think he'll get better, and so will New York. Also Receiving Votes: Erik Bedard, Ervin Santana, Kevin Milwood

Cy Young, NL: Tim Hudson (3-0, 1.40 ERA, 32 K's, 0.91 WHIP)
Wow. Huddy's been out of this world and easily, could be 6-0 at this point. So far, he has yet to pitch less than 7 innings in a start, and has allowed 1, 0 , 1 , 0, 3, and 2 earned runs. Occasionally, his control escapes him (4 walks in two separate starts so far). But his 12-strikeout, 0-walk, no decision, is proof he's for real this season. Also Receiving Votes: John Maine, Jake Peavy, Rich Hill

Cy Anora, NL: Carlos Zambrano (2-2, 5.77 ERA, 25 K's, 1.63 WHIP)
He has just one quality start in 6 tries, almost completely due to his control issues and affinity for the gopher-ball. He's allowed 19 walks and 8 home runs in 34 innings (and is on pace to issue more than 100 free passes, and give up more than 50 long balls). Maybe he and Alfonso Soriano should get together and see if they can't straighten each other out, because Soriano never walks, and has inexplicably lost his power stroke. Poor Lou Piniella. Also Receiving Votes: Chris Young, Dontrelle Willis (who somehow has 5 wins!)