May's Players of the Month

We’re back with May’s Pitchers and Hitters of the month. This time it’s just Daniels, Chad, and myself.

AL Pitcher of the Month:
1. Cliff Lee, Indians – 5 points
Chad: Hasn’t slowed down yet. Still has a WHIP below 1 and a very good ERA to go with it.
Eugene: Just imagine if this team could score some runs; he’d probably have the most wins in the league as well.
2. Jon Lester, Red Sox – 4 points
Chad: Cancer aside, the fact that he threw a no-no gets him the nod.
Eugene: If Lee wasn’t pitching so well and Lester wouldn’t have struggled following the no-hitter, he would have been first. He’s still had a pretty good month.
3. Scott Kazmir, Rays – 3 points
Daniels: *Sigh*. Kazmir had six starts coming off the DL in May. In those six starts he averaged about six IP, struck out 38, walked 13, had a WHIP under 1, and gave up less than one earned run per start. At least I get to watch Claudio Vargas.

Others receiving votes: Daisuke Matsuzaka, CC Sabathia, Shawn Marcum, Mariano Rivera.

NL Pitcher of the Month:
1. Edison Volquez, Reds – 8 points
Daniels: The other half of the Josh Hamilton trade (who we’ll mention in a bit). He held opponents to seven earned runs in seven starts in May. With all the decent players on the Reds, you’d really think they’d be better than they are. Crazy game.
Chad: Somehow has an ERA in the 1’s, as of write up, despite pitching in Cincy bandbox. Combined with a much better than one K/IP the last month, he’s be a real surprise.
2. Brandon Webb, Diamondbacks – 4 points
Chad: Continues to lead the league in wins pitching for the leagues best team.
Eugene: Even with a bad start in the month, he’s one of the top pitchers in the game. He’s working for another Cy Young.
3. Tim Lincecum, Giants – 3 points
Daniels: I like watching Lincecum pitch. He seems like he is so far ahead of other guys his age that it’s almost unfair. All this says to me is that the Giants, save Zito, might be really, really good in the next few years.
Eugene: The Kid is pitching lights out. He’s in the same boat as Lee: no run support. Plus he signed a couple of autographs for me, so he’s a good guy.

Others receiving votes: Kerry Wood, Tim Hudson.

AL Hitter of the Month:
1. Josh Hamilton, OF, Rangers – 9 points
Daniels: Talk about a trade that’s working out for both sides. While Hamilton is working in relative obscurity in Texas, he’s thrown up a really impressive May. He’s also leading the AL in hits, home runs, RBI, bases, and a bunch of stats that Joe Morgan would say are nonsense.
Chad: Making a run at a the triple crown. Bonus points for hitting the white baggy way in the upper deck of the metrodome. So what if it was BP, thats still impressive.
2. Carlos Quentin, OF, White Sox – 5 points
Daniels: Only Ozzie Guillen could have a first place team and still throw a hissy-fit about…… something.
Chad: Still leads the AL in homers, has hit 9 in the last month as of this write up.
Eugene: Did you know he was almost traded to the Indians for Cliff Lee before the Sox got him?
3. Milton Bradley, OF, Rangers – 2 points
Eugene: Bradley is seeing a lot of DH time after his injury last season, but he’s got the top OBP and Slugging in the league.

Others receiving votes: Justin Morneau, the Rays.

NL Hitter of the Month:
1. Lance Berkman, 1B, Astros – 7 points
Daniels: While Chipper’s “slid back” to hitting .392 in June, Lance Berkman has hit an absolutely insane .480/.563…. and that’s batting average/OBP, folks. Throw in his .850(!!!!) SLG in May and he’s single-handedly keeping alive my fantasy of rubbing the TGC staff’s collective noses in my Astros wildcard pick.
Chad: Berkman was hitting close to .500 half the month. As of this write up his batting average was sitting at a meager .436 for the month.
2. Chipper Jones, 3B, Braves – 5 points
Daniels: As loathe as I am to give Chipper anything, not giving him this would be silly. He’s taken a .400+ batting average through two months of the season. He “slid back” in June to a .392 batting average and a .512 OBP. Slacker.
Chad: Chipper continues to defy the odds and run towards .400.
3. Chase Utley, 2B, Phillies – 3 points
Eugene: Utley is doing for second base what A-Rod did for shortstops – he’s hitting like a corner infielder. That’s what the Phillies need since only one of their corners can hit.

Others receiving votes: Alfonso Soriano, Dan Uggla.