Justin Morneau

gh competition.  There are three first basemen who have clearly earned a spot on the AL squad: Justin Morneau, Miguel Cabrera, and Kevin Youkilis.  Mark Teixeira (.232/.345/.408), however, belongs at home.  Butler (.322 batting average, .377 On-Base Percentage, 42 Runs Batted In) should be left off the roster only if Joe Girardi chooses to carry only three first basemen AND Kansas City is represented by outfielder David Dejesus (.331 average, .398 OBP, 35 RBIs).

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How ‘bout that?

How about Justin Morneau?  The Twins’ first baseman is hitting .369 – over 100 points higher than he hit in 2009.  In addition to his improved batting average, Morneau’s slugging percentage of .674 is second in the majors to Miguel Cabrera’s .684.  Though his power numbers are better away from home (10 out of 12 home runs on the road), Morneau has fared well at Target Field, compiling a line of .378/.517/.567 in Minnesota’s brand-new open-air stadium.  Along with teammate Joe Mauer, Morneau is a major reason the Twins lead the AL Central by two and a half games over the Tigers.

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and a .907 OPS – all career highs.  Additionally, since taking over in right field when Justin Morneau went on the disabled list and Michael Cuddyer moved to first base, Kubel has not made a single error, giving Manager Ron Gardenhire confidence in his team despite the loss of one of his best players.

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Central lead, an impressive feat considering they lost cleanup man Justin Morneau – the team leader in home runs (30) and runs batted in (100) – to injury just before their hot streak.  The battle between Minnesota and Detroit is the only close race in the American League.

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slugging nearly .600 and if he had enough at-bats to be eligible, he would be ahead of the likes of Justin Morneau, Jason Bay, and Carlos Peña – among others - in the A.L.

How about the Nationals?  With a winning percentage of .281 (18-46), the Nats not only hold the worst record in the majors, but no other team is even close.  The Indians – the team with the next worst record – are 29-39, good for a .426 winning percentage.  Despite their awful record, Washington actually beat the Yankees the last two nights (including shutting them out on Thursday) to win the interleague series against the Bronx Bombers.

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Would you take Kevin Youlikis at first over Justin Morneau? Perhaps, or perhaps not—but Terry Francona must, because The Fans Said So.

And this is just the AL. The NL is “stuck” with Lance Berkman, who’s having a heck of a year, instead of Albert Pujols, whom NL skipper Clint Hurdle had to hand-pick after fans passed on him. Pujols, for those of you who have been asleep since 2001, has been arguably the best hitter in baseball since then. And Ryan Braun’s a whiz with the bat—when he makes contact—but not such a great defender in left. Might you want to shift Nate McLouth, a reserve who normally plays in center, to right instead, since Nate’s OPS is 16 points higher even than slugger Braun?

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and offense and in Minnesota he was relieved of that burden the last couple years by Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau. I am skeptical that at 32 he is going to be able to sustain the numbers that he put up for the first time last season. On the other hand, if Casey Kotchman and Howie Kendrick (who will both be 25 this season) can develop into the hitters they are expected to be, and Juan Rivera can return to the form he showed before missing nearly all of last season due to an injury, the Angels offense instantly boasts more pop than they demonstrated last year.

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gue, who will lead at what category, who will win the awards, and who are the flops.  Enjoy!1B Justin Morneau2B Robinson Cano3B Alex Rodriguez or Miguel CaberaSS Carlos GuillenC Joe MauerOF Tori HunterOF Grady SizemoreOF Magglio OrdonezUTIL David OrtizSP Josh BeckettSP John LackeySP Justin VerlanderCLOSER Jonathon Papelbon

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