Who Saw This Coming?

As we flip the calendar to June, there are a bunch of surprises - both positive and negative - around the sport of baseball. There have been lots of head-scratching and eye-opening in 2008. Let's look at some of the surprises and disappointments from the first two months of the season.

SURPRISES

• Many of the so called "experts" picked the Mets, Yankees, Tigers, Reds (or Brewers) Mariners (or Angels), and the Padres to at least battle for their respective divisions, if not win them. But as we look at the standings here on June 1, 2008, that is not the case. Instead, you have teams like the Rays, White Sox, A's, Marlins and the Twins are all either leading or close to the top of their divisions. Out of this bunch, the Rays and Marlins have been considered the biggest of the surprises. But in my eyes, the Marlins, A's and White Sox have been the most surprising, and most likely to flop in the second half. Ladies and gentlemen, the Rays are legit and will be competing the entire season.
• On December 21 of 2007, the Texas Rangers and Cincinnati Reds made a trade. The Reds sent outfielder Josh Hamilton to Texas for pitcher Edinson Volquez. Well, I can't recall a deal working out so well for both teams. For the Rangers, Hamilton is leading baseball in RBI, tied for the league lead in home runs, and is second in the league in batting average - can you say Triple Crown threat? Meanwhile, Volquez leads all of baseball in both strikeouts and ERA, and is tied for third in wins - can you say Triple Crown threat?
• The Cubs have been an astounding story so far in '08. The last time the Cubs won the World Series was back in 1908 (exactly 100 years ago, for those keeping score at home). And the last time the Cubs were in first place on June 1 was in 1908. A lot was made about the 100-year anniversary of the last Cubs' World Series victory during the offseason, and the North-Siders have not disappointed. They have gotten very strong pitching from the always dependable Carlos Zambrano, but they have also received some surprising starts from former closer Ryan Dempster. New closer Kerry Wood has seen his bumps in the road, but has more-or-less flourished as the stopper. The acquisitions of Reid Johnson and Kosuke Fukudome have given the Cubbies some great defense in the outfield, as well as steady right-handed bats in the lineup. And catcher Geovany Soto is already a favorite to win the Rookie of the Year.

DISAPPOINTMENTS

• When you think about the disappointments so far in 2008, you almost have to start with the Detroit Tigers. General Manager Dave Dombrowski pulled off some of the greatest transactions during the offseason in recent memory, acquiring Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis and Edgar Renteria for mainly prospects and minor-leaguers. But after two months, they sit in fourth place in the AL Central, seven games in back of the White Sox. Gary Sheffield, who was recently placed on the 15-day DL, has been no help, hitting three home runs so far this season. Curtis Granderson, who began the season on the DL, is hitting .254 and has only three stolen bases. And the starting pitching hasn't been any better. Former Rookie of the Year, Justin Verlander (remember, he threw a no-hitter last season) is 2-8 with an ugly 5.16 ERA. He also carries 44 strikeouts and 31 walks in 75 innings pitched. In fact, the only Tigers starter to have started at least eight games and have an ERA under 4.00 is Armando Galarraga (3.44). Galarraga, who pitched in three games last season for the Rangers, has been the lone bright spot on this super-talented team. To go along with his good ERA, he is 4-2 and has 33 strikeouts in just about 50 innings pitched. The Tigers rank third in baseball with a $137,290,196 salary, according to ESPN.com. It's about time they start playing like it.
• The entire National League West Division (aside from perhaps the Arizona Diamondbacks) are a complete and utter disappointment. The D-Backs are the only team to have a record above .500, and are the only ones to be playing any kind of consistent baseball. The Rockies and Padres have battled all season so far for the worst record in baseball. The Dodgers have gotten nothing out of Andruw Jones, Brad Penny or Nomar Garciaparra. The Giants, surprisingly, are in third place, but really have no legitimate offense to stay there. This division was supposed to be one of the strongest and toughest in baseball - but instead, they remain the weakest of all six divisions.
• And on an individual basis, there are a number of players performing well below their expectations. Jim Thome, Paul Konerko, Carlos Delgado, Bill Hall, Trevor Hoffman, and Travis Hafner are only a handful of these players. Hafner has to be considered one of the biggest disappointments, as he currently sits on the 15-day DL with a right shoulder strain. So far in 2008, Hafner has hit a paltry .218 with only four homers and 22 RBI. We are talking about a slugger who belted 42 home runs two seasons ago. And what's disturbing, in my opinion, is players like these will make the All-Star game just because of their names, even though they don't deserve it statistically.

OTHER NICE STORIES

There have been some other great stories in baseball so far. Stories that do not focus on a struggling team, player or division. Like these:

• Josh Hamilton, mentioned above, has had a tremendous season. This 27-year old from Raleigh, who was drafted in the first round by Tampa Bay in the 1999 draft, has overcome substance abuse which almost forced him out of the game entirely. But here sits, threatening to become the next Triple Crown winner, and looks like a sure stud.
• Jon Lester pitched a no-hitter in May, after overcoming lymphoma in 2006-07.
• The Cincinnati Reds finally called up slugging prospect Jay Bruce. Why the Reds waited so long, with Corey Patterson starting in center field, is beyond me. But so far Bruce has done nothing but impress. He hit his first career home run (a walk-off game-winning homer by the way) on Saturday. In his first six games since being called up on Tuesday, Bruce has put together this line: 13 hits in 22 at-bats, 10 runs scored, three doubles, two home runs, six RBI, two stolen bases and six walks. In comparison, last year's Rookie of the Year, Ryan Braun, had only six hits, four RBI, and three runs scored in his first six Major League games. Jay Bruce will be doing good things for a long time.
  

Statistical information courteous of MLB.com and baseballreference.com