who flops in May?

d-backs, barmes & myers.

based on absolutely nothing, but the divine inspiration of frank robinson.

as a white sox fan, i have to admit i think they will. or maybe in june.

being delusional and in the throes of pre-exam vapors, i will make no such concession re: the o's.

vinny castilla?

that's another kettle of chorizo.

I'm going to say that the O's will be in it for awhile, even if they don't sneak into the postseason. I think Brian Roberts will continue to have a very good year, even if he doesn't hit 60+ HR. Derrek Lee is awesome. Mike Hampton is going to keep at it, he's good.

White Sox

I think they have been pitching over their head and their hitting isn't gonzo enough to take them over the top. I'd give them to the Allstar break against the Twins, but I just can't see this team winning 90 games. Lone exception would be if The Big Hurt comes back with a crusher bat, which would be a big suprise. I'd like to see that happen, but I think those days are gone. I think they will probably fade.

Orioles

They will hang in there as long as their starting pitching holds up. I could see them winning 84 games or so, as their lineup is pretty sharp. Take out The Unit and Rivera and the O's pitching is about as good as the Yanks. If everything goes well and they either stock their bullpen or get a top notch starter, I could see the O's being playoff bound next year. They will definitely still be around in May, as they have six games against KC.

D-Backs

For as much as they paid, at least they are getting production out of their free agent signees. Other than their closer, the D-Back bullpen looks fugly. Their starters have done pretty good, but above what you might expect. They hit pretty good, but do you think Shawn Green, Gonzo and Glaus can all stay healthy for an entire season? Odds say one of those three will be on the DL for a long stretch before the year is done. They will be playing a bunch of teams in May that they faced once in April, so I have to think their starters might get touched up a bit more.

Clint Barmes
I will be freakin' loving it if this guy is still hitting .421 at the end of May, as I have him on my fantasy team. That being said, the guy did hit pretty good in both of his late season call ups before this year. Barmes doesn't get many walks, but the guy has only struck out six times in 19 games, so he is putting the ball in play. He plays in Denver, so his hitting stats should come off a bit better, but you never know.

Derrek Lee
This might be his breakout season. Lee has always gotten off to slow starts and then busted out the past couple of years. If he continues to follow in playing better as the season goes along, this could be a career year and perhaps NL MVP canidate. I'm a Cubs fan, they need something going right, so I hope for the best. Keep that damn Leon Durham voodoo doll in the back in the closet!

Brian Roberts/Victor Dias
Don't really know much about either of these guys, other than the article I read on Roberts last week.

Jon Garland
This guy has been a perennial favorite to break out and have a big year. Maybe he is this years Carl Pavanno, I know his agent is hoping this is the case.

Brett Myers
See above. Those K numbers are the suprising stat.

Mike Hampton
Hampton pitched pretty good in the second half last year, I know because I dumped his sorry ass off my fantasy squad when his ERA was like 7.25 after a dozen starts. Unlike these other guys, Hampton has a past record that says he can pitch like he has in April. Take out the two lost years in Colorado and his career line would appear a bit different.

I doubt the Dodgers will keep winning all these bottom-of-the-ninth games.

A player that is suprising me by his peformance is Chan Ho Park. I don't think he has put together this many good starts since he signed that huge contract, this must be the last year of the deal.

Diaz is already returning to earth: a single in his last 15 AB.

Top four AL pitchers in VORP:

Garland, Chacin, KENNY ROGERS!?!, Washburn.

Pick him up off the wire in your rotisserie league![/nyuk]

Park has another year at ~$13.5 after this one. Haha, screw yoooouuuuu Tom Hicks.

White Sox - 18-10 in May after 17-7 April
Orioles - 15-13 after 16-7 (that's more like it)
Diamondbacks - 16-12 after 14-20

Brian Roberts - .379/.459/.726 April; .358/.440/.569 May
Derrek Lee - .419/.490/.767; .313/.424/.646
Clint Barmes - .410/.467/.639; .254/.285/.390 (BUSTED)
Victor Diaz - .292/.432/.538; .250/.344/.429 (28 AB w/ Mets in May)

Mike Hampton - 38 IP, 1.67 ERA; 21 IP, 2.11
Jon Garland - 1.80; 4.22
Brett Myers - 1.35; 2.63
Gustavo Chacin - 2.48; 4.39

One ominous omen for Myers - he's been giving up a fair number of HRs all season (7 or 8 so far, I think). If he fails to K guys (like he did his last start), he's going to be in deep doo-doo.

Um, Morb? Did the D-Backs actually play 34 games in April?

i'd be curious to see the breakdown on home hr and away hr given the coziness of cbbp. phillies have also played a fair amount of games in cinci this season, a homerrific paradise.

That should be 14-10 for AZ in April. They're holding steadier than I'd have expected ... til Pedro takes all the steam out of em tnite!

Craig Counsell nearly has a 900 OPS, w/ an OBP on the good side of 450. That's just silly. Also - relying on Russ Ortiz & Shawn Estes = recipe for kaboom. B-Webb's had a nice bounce-back, though. And Brad Halsey!

Why were the Dodgers excluded from this list? They've had the worst May in franchise history!

But as many picked em for first in the West, their good April was not unexpected.