« NL All Star Watch, Pt. II »

Catcher:

Paul Lo Duca led NL catchers in batting in April with .328. His may average dipped down to .244 but his cumulative numbers are respectable. Meanwhile, Ramon Hernandez swung with a .315 average and Yadier Molina did him better (.338), but the impressive stat is his runners thrown out: out of 20 attempts, he’s gunned out 14, by far a majors-leading 70 percent. So why only fifth? Molina didn’t start well with a .162 average in April. He probably won’t get much attention from the voters but if he keeps his numbers up, he could sneak in as the back-up.

1. Ramon Hernandez, Padres ( .301 BA, 6 HR, 29 RBI, .337 OBP, .472 SLG, 25% CS)
2. Paul Lo Duca, Marlins ( .283 BA, 2 HR, 20 RBI, .349 OBP, .379 SLG, 33% CS)
3. Johnny Estrada, Braves ( .270 BA, 1 HR, 23 RBI, .319 OBP, .392 SLG, 33% CS)
4. Mike Piazza, Mets ( .247 BA, 6 HR, 25 RBI, .311 OBP, .432 SLG, 11% CS)
5. Yadier Molina, Cardinals ( .253 BA, 2 HR, 17 RBI, .283 OBP, .329 SLG, 70% CS)

First Base:

Derrek Lee and Albert Pujols are battling for starting first baseman in June, and come September could very well vie for MVP of the league. Currently Lee has a sizable lead ahead of Pujols in every listed category. The hot hitting in May came from Sean Casey (.355) and Olmedo Saenz (.340), but Saenz only has 84 at-bats all year, not yet enough for All Star consideration. And watch out for Carlos Delgado down in Florida. He led May NL first basemen with RBI (24), doubles (11), OPS (1.058), and tied for homeruns (7) with the Pirates’ Daryle Ward. The month was specifically rough on Todd Helton (.255), explaining his absence from his normally perennial presence atop the rankings.

1. Derrek Lee, Cubs ( .360 BA, 16 HR, 46 RBI, 9 SB, .454 OBP, .702 SLG)
2. Albert Pujols, Cardinals ( .325 BA, 12 HR, 42 RBI, 3 SB, .401 OBP, 580 SLG)
3. Carlos Delgado, Marlins ( .315 BA, 10 HR, 35 RBI, 0 SB, .398 OBP, .579 SLG)
4. Nick Johnson, Nationals ( .322 BA, 7 HR, 30 RBI, 2 SB, .434 OBP, .519 SLG)
5. Sean Casey, Reds ( .317 BA, 2 HR, 21 RBI, 1 SB, .368 OBP, .426 SLG)

Second Base:

Mark Grudzielanek or Jeff Kent? While not as glamorous as the Lee-Pujols debate, these two players are underrated every year (even though Kent is a former MVP) and each bring a different style of winning play to the diamond. If you like batting average, you’ll go with Grudzy. If you like runs driven in, Kent’s your man. But Kent, despite 20 RBI in May, only hit .208, giving him the lowest average of these five gentlemen. And the half-cermonial five-spot goes to Rob Mackowiak, who in 64 May at-bats went .410 with 3 HR and 15 RBI.

1. Mark Grudzielanek, Cardinals ( .329 BA, 3 HR, 19 RBI, 2 SB, .374 OBP, .480 SLG)
2. Jeff Kent, Dodgers ( .267 BA, 9 HR, 38 RBI, 2 SB, .354 OBP, .483 SLG)
3. Craig Biggio, Astros (.284 BA, 8 HR, 23 RBI, 4 SB, .342 OBP, .514 SLG)
4. Craig Counsell, Diamondbacks ( .318 BA, 2 HR, 18 RBI, 9 SB, .431 OBP, .445 SLG)
5. Rob Mackowiak ( .331 BA, 4 HR, 21 RBI, 4 SB, .414 OBP, .488 SLG)

Third Base:

Go figure. Chipper Jones leads all third basemen in batting average. He’s a career .300 hitter. A so-so May kept his place on the top spot, but the hot hand goes to Morgan Ensberg. Eight homers and 19 RBI is good for the season so far, but those were his May numbers. And the month’s ‘yikes’ goes to the Nationals’ Vinny Castilla, who batted only .234, 1 homer, 9 RBI.

1. Chipper Jones, Braves ( .317 BA, 7 HR, 26 RBI, 1 SB, .444 OBP, .576 SLG)
2. Troy Glaus, Diamondbacks ( .260 BA, 13 HR, 36 RBI, 3 SB, .354 OBP, .564 SLG)
3. Morgan Ensberg, Astros (.281 BA, 10 HR, 26 RBI, 4 SB, .386 OBP, .525 SLG)
4. David Wright, Mets ( .299 BA, 8 HR, 29 RBI, 3 SB, .397 OBP, .533 SLG)
5. Aramis Ramirez, Cubs ( .263 BA, 10 HR, 26 RBI, 0 SB, .330 OBP, .503 SLG)

Shortstop:

Everyone was in love with Clint Barmes in April, who hit .410. But May was cruel to him, hitting only .261 although his home run and RBI numbers kept up the same pace. Cesar Izturis’s average now surpasses Barmes, but that is his only statistic. And the power outage among NL shortstops continues in 2005 as the leader in that category is Felipe Lopez with 8.

1. Clint Barmes, Rockies ( .320 BA, 7 HR, 27 RBI, 4 SB, .364 OBP, .495 SLG)
2. Cesar Izturis, Dodgers ( .344 BA, 1 HR, 19 RBI, 4 SB, .390 OBP, .423 SLG)
3. Felipe Lopez, Reds ( .295 BA, 8 HR, 25 RBI, 4 SB, .355 OBP, .561 SLG)
4. David Eckstein, Cardinals ( .300 BA, 2 HR, 15 RBI, 4 SB, .376 OBP, .395 SLG)
5. Omar Vizquel, Giants ( .281 BA, 0 HR, 15 RBI, 10 SB, .353 OBP, .373 SLG)

Outfield:

He hit .404 in May. He also had 11 homers and 30 runs driven in. He’s Bobby Abreu, your top outfielder by far … so far. Other hot-hitting outfielders in May include Brian Giles (.379), Mike Cameron (.373) and Miguel Cabrera (.370). Carlos Lee hit 30 RBI in May, and the outfielder with the most base hits in May goes to … you guessed it, Brady Clark (42 for 117, .359). Wait … Brady Clark? Yeah.

1. Bobby Abreu, Phillies ( .332 BA, 12 HR, 37 RBI, 14 SB, .461 OBP, .576 SLG)
2. Miguel Cabrera, Marlins (.356 BA, 10 HR, 34 RBI, 0 SB, .400 OBP, .600 SLG)
3. Adam Dunn, Reds ( .240 BA, 14 HR, 27 RBI, 3 SB, .407 OBP, 581 SLG)
4. Brian Giles, Padres ( .291 BA, 7 HR, 32 RBI, 4 SB, 419 OBP, 527 SLG)
5. Jim Edmonds, Cardinals ( .288 BA, 10 HR, 32 RBI, 1 SB, .416 OBP, .569 SLG)
6. Brady Clark, Brewers ( .335 BA, 6 HR, 24 RBI, 4 SB, .397 OBP, .479 SLG)
7. Jason Bay, Pirates ( .292 BA, 11 HR, 25 RBI, 3 SB, .368 OBP, 551 SLG)
8. Luis Gonzalez, Diamondbacks ( .293 BA, 6 HR, 31 RBI, 2 SB, .396 OBP, .452 SLG)
9. Pat Burrell, Phillies ( .305 BA, 9 HR, 42 RBI, 0 SB, .354 OBP, .473 SLG)
10. Carlos Lee, Brewers (.265 BA, 12 HR, 44 RBI, 5 SB, .321 OBP, .510 SLG)

Pitcher (starting):

Mark Prior would have made this list, but since his season is in jeopardy, I didn’t include him. But he probably would have made this list of 10. Clemens stays in first, not because of hard luck because his ERA would probably make him 9-1 on any team with half of an offense. He had the strongest ERA of any pitcher who made at least four starts in May. The final spot was given to Mark Redman in recognition of 10 of his 11 games being considered quality starts.

1. Roger Clemens, Astros (3-3, 1.30 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 9.00 K/9)
2. Pedro Martinez, Mets (5-1, 2.79 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, 10.52 K/9)
3. Dontrelle Willis, Marlins (8-2, 1.67 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 7.33 K/9)
4. Jake Peavy, Padres (5-0, 2.37 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 9.24 K/9)
5. Mike Hampton, Braves (4-1, 1.83 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 3.36 K/9)
6. Matt Morris, Cardinals (5-0, 3.38 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 7.82 K/9)
7. Brett Myers, Phillies (4-3, 2.06 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 9.20 K/9)
8. Josh Beckett, Marlins (7-3, 2.62 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 8.91 K/9)
9. Livan Hernandez, Nationals (8-2, 3.61 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 5.79 K/9)
10. Mark Redman, Pirates (3-4, 3.14 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 4.77 K/9)

Pitcher (closing):

Jason Isringhausen is this year's Eric Gagne. Just look at that ERA so far. That's slick. Same goes with Trevor Hoffman and Billy Wagner, but no closer list is complete without them. The Diamondbacks’ Brandon Lyon, who was put on the DL earlier this month, will probably miss three more weeks with pain in his elbow, so he won’t be added to this despite his 13/14 saves and sub-2.00 ERA.

1. Jason Isringhausen, Cardinals (0.52 ERA, 15/15 sv, 6.23 K/9)
2. Chad Cordero, Nationals (1.44 ERA, 13/15 sv, 8.28 K/9)
3. Trevor Hoffman, Padres (2.89 ERA, 16/18 sv, 9.16 K/9)
4. Billy Wagner, Phillies (2.78 ERA, 11/13 sv, 8.34 K/9)
5. Todd Jones, Marlins (1.48 ERA, 8/9 sv, 7.03 K/9)

Hopefully all stats are accurate. Matthew T. Sussman began to compile these stats during the tail end of Tuesday night’s games. Some of them could be off by an at-bat or an inning or two. And if not ... meh.

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