Greg Maddux is 5-0 for the first time in his career?  Unbelievable that he never started out so well previously, but his new found resurgence, aside from being due to his off season work out regimen, is the re-tooled bull pen which the Cubs management put together in the offseason.  Scott Eyre, former SF Giant bull pen horse, has an 0.77 era proving that his dominance was no one season, free agent year to be aberration.

Kevin Mench has homered in seven straight games?  He is hitting a home run for every 10 at bats, compared to his career average of one for every 20 at bats.  Never considered a bad player, his ascendancy to these lofty heights is unexpected, in spite of the heralded change in shoe to a half size bigger.

Miguel Tejada and Derek Jeter lead the American League in hitting, both well above .400.   In fact both are raising their averages at this time of year, rather than sinking to this level after a hot start.   Tejada’s spring was so mediocre, there was speculation he had lost something or was unhappy about his

plight on what is perceived to be a team that will not compete for the pennant.   Jeter, on the other hand, is doing what he does best, perform on the biggest stage in all of baseball and flourish in the light.  No one criticizes Steinbrenner for giving him such a big contract, making him the highest paid shortstop in the league, just ahead of ……Rafael Furcal?

 Dodger GM Ned Colletti has taken a page out of the Brian Sabean manual on how to put together a baseball team, and the failings are apparent.  His pitching staff is suspect, exasperated of course by the loss of closer Eric Gagne.  But the old guys are not performing as he would have envisioned.  Garciaparra, in spite of his grand slam home run to beat Brad Lidge, is not really hitting so well.  Jeff Kent’s batting average languishes at the Mendoza Line (.200).  Furcal, after a hot start, is hitting .202, which just does not cut it anywhere in a lineup much less at the lead off spot and being paid $13m per year!

A couple weeks ago, Ramon Hernandez, catcher for the Orioles, was leading the American League in batting, but now his average is settling and undoubtedly he will bat what he normally does, a career .264 hitter.  It is truly peculiar that this guy was offered such a good contract as a free agent (4 years @ $27.5 m).  He is, at best, an average receiver, does not frame pitches well nor does he throw exceptionally well either (.258 CS percentage, a figure that has been getting lower and lower for the past four years of his major league career).   But one good year at the plate last year (.290 average but only 12 hr and 58 rbi) earned him this ridiculous contract.

The early season victories for the Blue Jays, fuelled by off season acquisitions Troy Glaus and Lyle Overbay resulted in such accolades for the Toronto front office and their commitment to excellence and eventually dethroning the Red Sox and Yankees as the best of the east.   But their averages have steadily fallen as the month has worn on and with AJ Burnett on the DL for the indefinite future, their plans have apparently been foiled.

With Derrek Lee out of the Cub line up for up to 10 weeks, they might want to start shopping around for a replacement, a real first baseman rather than Todd Walker, a 2b by trade.  Walker is doing his best to imitate the powerful Lee, hitting .355 but his replacement at 2b, Neifi Perez is hitting only .176 and may be best suited for a utility role.  Perhaps the Cubs should inquire about JT Snow, a former Baker favorite in SF and an accomplished fielder as well as a high on base percentage hitter, now languishing on the bench in Boston.  Signed to a free

agent contract in the off season when the Giants refused to make him an offer, ANY offer, and let him walk.  Snow can still hit, albeit not for power but who needs power in Boston when Ortiz and Ramirez dominate the middle of that line up.  But Snow is getting NO time in the field, and could be a real asset to a team like Chicago.  Boston has Hee Seop Choi in the minors if they need a lefty first baseman to occupy a spot on the bench, so it seems they might be amenable to trading Snow and getting rid of his $2m salary as a bench warmer.

Rookie of the year talk should be heating up in Florida, a virtual wasteland for baseball these days.  Hanley Ramirez, a minor league prospect obtained from Boston for Josh Beckett, is hitting .313, but more importantly has a .394 OBA from the lead off spot.  He is 6’3” in the Cal Ripken mode of a tall SS and has all the tools to succeed.  Florida really does have a monumental task in .

competing with six rookies in the starting line up but when one of them plays like Ramirez has been, it takes some of the pressure off and manager  Joe Girardi finds his job a bit easier.   Cub SS Ronny Cedeno, too, has been opening eyes around the league batting .333 with a  .370 OBA.   Prince Fielder, son of Cecil Fielder, hitting .345 (.394OBA) is another obvious AL...oops. NL rookie of the year candidate. The Brewers are now in the NL!

It is early yet, but the Mets appear to be the class of the NL East, the only team with a winning record and currently “running away” from the crowd, six games up on the 2^nd place Braves, who appear to have problems.  Kaz Matsui has been good since his return from the DL, solidifying what must be the best infield in baseball.  

 The White Sox, too, are a class act, with the resurgent Jermaine Dye quietly providing the punch behind the Thome/Konerko 3-4

spots in the line up.  Building upon his stellar World Series performance, Dye has apparently recovered from the injuries that plagued him in Oakland, hitting .333 with 19 rbi, just behind Thome’s club leading 21.  With pitching provided by Contreras (league leading 1.55 era), Freddy Garcia (4-1 despite a high era) and Mark Buehrle (2.57 era), the Sox appear to be well positioned to compete for the AL Central title again, but will undoubtedly be pressured by the still very young but very talented Cleveland Indians.

The Giants line up suddenly looks better as Bonds has hit three home runs in his last six games and had four rbi in one game, with a bases loaded double (he literally walked into 2b, as the relay was looking at home plate in hopes of cutting off the 3^rd run) against the Diamondbacks.   His 9^th inning heroics against Billy Wagner, high priced closer for the Mets, was quite dramatic but to no avail as they lost the game in 11.   But Moises Alou has been making teams pay for walking Bonds, hitting home runs behind his heralded and despised teammate, batting .373 for the season with 23 rbi, good for 3^rd in the league behind Pujols and

Lance Berkman of the Astros.  Having Steve Finley as a 4^th outfielder to spell Bonds and Alou is a luxury few team can afford nor fewer general managers could imagine possible as the Angels were desperate to unload him after an injury plagued 2005 campaign.   The Giants stole him, unloading the undesirable Edgardo Alfonso (.150 BA so far this season) for Finley who curiously leads the NL in triples.  Pretty good for a 41 year old outfielder whose best days are behind him but who can still run, throw and apparently hit like a much younger player.