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The time has come – we’ve reached the midway point of the 2009 MLB season. It’s been an eventful year in more ways than one. From the tragic death of rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart of the Angels early in the season to the resurgence of David Ortiz after one of the worst slumps of his career, there’s a lot to talk about. Winners, losers, surprises, disappointments: let’s talk about the first half of this season.

I’m starting in the National League, and at a logical point: the first-half MVP. Without question, it’s Albert Pujols. He’s always an offensive juggernaut, but this year may see the first Triple Crown winner in the majors since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967, and the first in the National League since fellow Cardinal Joe Medwick in 1937. It’s interesting to note Medwick hit 31 home runs that season – Pujols already has 32. He’s leading the NL in home runs and RBIs, and only trails the leader in batting average by 7 points. If anyone can do it, it’s Pujols. Without his offensive dominance, the Cardinals wouldn’t be in first place.

My Cy Young pick for the first half of the season is Tim Lincecum. He won it last year in his breakout second season, and he’s not letting up any this year either. His ERA is a staggeringly low 2.33 (only trailing Dan Haren with 2.01, but considering the state of the Diamondbacks, it’s only a matter of time before that number rises), he has 10 wins (only trailing Jason Marquis with 11), and he leads both leagues with 149 strikeouts. He’s young and overpowering, not to mention the favorite to repeat if he keeps up this pace.

The biggest surprise in the NL this season has been the San Francisco Giants. A miserable 72-90 last year (4^th in a weak NL West), they’re turning it around this year, posting a 49-38 record so far this year behind power pitching from Lincecum, Matt Cain, an unlikely no hitter by Jonathan Sanchez, and a 300 game winner in Randy Johnson (something analysts said was impossible after Greg Maddux achieved that milestone). Also receiving credit is Pablo Sandoval, a likely candidate for NL Rookie of the Year, and Aaron Rowand one of the best defensive outfielders in the game.

The Cubs and Mets have been equally disappointing, and neither of them really have a good excuse. The Mets paid top-dollar to acquire ace closer Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez, who set the single season record for saves last year with 62, and they’re currently only above the Washington Nationals in a very winnable NL East. Only 6.5 games separate first place from fourth, so it’s still (almost) anyone’s division. Acquiring Jeff Francoeur a few days ago is already paying dividends – he went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs in his Mets debut, while the man he replaced, Ryan Church, went hitless in his Braves debut.

I have a bigger problem with the Cubs. They won the NL Central by 7.5 games last year, posting 97 wins, and this year they’re only hanging on to a .500 record entering today, still good enough for third place. Milton Bradley is not panning out, and letting Kerry Wood go after he finally found his niche as a closer didn’t make much sense either. To be fair, the Cubs are banged up at the moment, with Ryan Dempster, Derrek Lee, and Geovany Soto all on the DL at the moment. Even so, it doesn’t make up for falling off that much with basically the same team as last year.

Now let’s move on to the American League, where the MVP race is a lot tighter. For right now, I’m giving the nod to Jason Bay in spite of a recent slump. He has 20 home runs (4 behind Carlos Pena, the AL leader) and 72 RBIs, which is best in the AL. He’s been making great plays in left field and consistently delivering clutch hits, prompting Red Sox fans to forget all about #24. He desperately needs to get his average up to win the award: the lowest batting average of an MVP was .267 by Marty Marion for the St Louis Cardinals in 1944.

Even closer than my selection for first-half MVP is the AL first-half Cy Young winner. Tim Wakefield has the most wins (11), Justin Verlander has the most strikeouts (141), and Zack Greinke has the lowest ERA (2.12). But comparing them against each other, I have to go with Greinke. He has a lower ERA, more complete games and shutouts, allowed fewer home runs and walks, he’s caught more baserunners stealing than bases they’ve stolen, has a lower WHIP and opponent batting average, and has more strikeouts per walk and fewer walks per 9 innings than Wakefield and Verlander. He also has 10 of Kansas City’s 37 wins. Think about that – if they didn’t have Greinke, they’d be only a half game better than the Nationals.

As much as I like the fighting spirit of the Texas Rangers or the comeback year by Carl Pavano (he’s won 8 games this year after winning 9 his last 4 years in New York), there’s no bigger surprise in the American League than the Detroit Tigers. Last year, they won only 74 games; only the Orioles and Mariners won fewer than that. This year, they lead the division by 2.5 games over last year’s division champion White Sox. Brandon Inge and Justin Verlander have been unstoppable, and even with injuries to Jeremy Bonderman, Carlos Guillen, and Nate Robertson, they’re still managing to win games through great starting pitching and solid defense.

As with the National League, two teams really have been disappointments: the Minnesota Twins and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The Twins lost the division by one game last year, and in spite of the ridiculous season Joe Mauer is having (with a .381 batting average), they can’t seem to pull themselves out of mediocrity. They’re .500 on the season and 5-5 in their last 10 games. It’s not exactly a recipe for success. I know the Angels lost their closer and have been plagued with injuries to Vlad Guerrero and other players, but they were the only 100 win team in the majors last year, and to only be leading the division by half a game over Texas really is unacceptable, especially considering injuries to the Rangers star player Josh Hamilton. I don’t see the Angels being able to hold on: either the Rangers or also surprising Mariners will win the division.

To close everything out, I’ve got two bold predictions and my division winners. First, after having a superstar like Manny Ramirez test positive for a banned substance and get hit with a 50 game suspension reminds me that this is not yet a steroid-free league. I expect another major star will be suspended this season, and I think it will be another Hispanic player as well. Such substances are readily available in the Caribbean, and with many players participating in Winter leagues, it’s obvious there are players still breaking the rules and expecting to get away with it. Another superstar will test positive this season, and they still won’t learn.

I also think the Cubs will take place in a blockbuster trade before the deadline passes. It could happen with any team in a tight division race, but I think it’s going to be the Cubs. Fans have recently been unhappy with the performance of Carlos Zambrano, and I could see him being packaged with some prospects if the Cubs want to make a run at acquiring Roy Halladay. As we’ve seen in the past, getting a starting pitcher can be the difference in a team’s playoff chances. The prime example is CC Sabathia, traded last year to the Brewers, who in turn won the NL Wild Card. Don’t forget Ben Sheets is still a free agent: the Cubs could involve him in a sign-and-trade with Zambrano to sweeten the deal for Toronto.

Lastly, my division winners. Starting in the NL, I’m predicting the Phillies to repeat in the East, the Brewers to surprise the Cardinals in the Central, and the Dodgers to drop the West to the up and coming Giants. I think the Cardinals are still a good enough team to take the Wild Card, driven by Pujols, Chris Carpenter, and Ryan Franklin. In the AL, I think the Red Sox will hold on in the East, the Tigers to win the Central and complete their worst to first season, and the Texas Rangers to win the West. In a bit of cruel irony, the Yankees will miss the playoffs for a second year in a row, showing them it takes more than just throwing big contracts at free agents to make a winning team. I think the Rays are getting their act together enough to pull out the Wild Card, narrowly defeating the Mariners.

If you’ve stuck with it this far, thanks for reading. I’d love to hear your opinions on anything I covered (your picks for MVP and Cy Young, division winners, etc).

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Father’s day is a day to honor and reflect on good times. On a day like today, it brings to mind sports. I remember watching football games with my dad when I was younger, and to this day, we always talk about football regardless of season. Sports are a great way to bond with your father or son, and in honor of the impact sports has on our lives, I’d like to post today about great father-son combinations in sports.

First off, and certainly one of the more prolific on my list, is the Griffey family. Ken Sr. gained fame as a consistent contact hitter in the mid to late 1970s as a part of the Cincinnati Reds and their “Big Red Machine”. His oldest son, Ken Jr., was drafted first overall by the Seattle Mariners in 1987, and due to his success in the major leagues has often been considered as the greatest first overall pick in baseball history. He made his debut in 1989, and was joined in 1990 by his father, making them the first father-son combination to play on the same MLB team at the same time. On September 14^th of that year, they homered back-to-back in a game against the Kansas City Royals.

Overall, their combined statistics and awards are staggering. Between them, they have a regular season and All-Star Game MVP (regular season for Jr., All-Star for Sr.), 16 All-Star appearances (3 for Sr., 13 for Jr.), 7 Silver Slugger Awards (all by Jr.), 10 consecutive Gold Gloves (all by Jr. from 1990-1999), 2 World Series championships (1975 and 76 by Sr.), and 770 home runs (152 by Sr., 618 currently by Jr.). It’s also interesting to note Jr. wore #30 during his first 5 years in Cincinnati (in honor of his father), and hit his 500^th career home run on Father’s day with Ken Sr. in attendance. It also tied them on the all-time hits list for the time being. All things considered, the Griffeys are one of the great father-son teams in baseball history.

I wrote earlier in the week about the Earnhardts in racing, so I’ll talk about the Petty family this time around. The first family of NASCAR, it doesn’t begin with The King. Modern NASCAR fans don’t remember his father, Lee Petty, who began his career at age 35. He was part of the first ever NASCAR race at the old dirt track Charlotte Speedway in 1949, finishing outside the top 10. He would go on to win the championship three times (1954, 58, and 59), and won the inaugural Daytona 500, literally in a photo finish. Lee Petty won 54 career races, but his true legacy lives on because of his son, Richard.

He began racing in 1958, and looking at the numbers is without question the greatest driver in NASCAR history. Richard Petty won 200 races in his career, a record harder to break than Joe DiMaggio’s hitting streak (2^nd on the list is his contemporary, David Pearson, with only 105 career wins). He won 7 Winston Cup championships, a record matched only by Dale Earnhardt Sr. He won the Daytona 500 an unheard-of 7 times. In 1967 alone he won 27 races, including 10 in a row. To paint a clearer picture, Bobby and Terry Labonte, Jeff Burton, Kurt Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth, and the late great Benny Parsons never won that many in their careers. Those numbers are just staggering, and to add further to the legacy of Richard Petty, he and his family founded Victory Junction, a camp to bring joy to children with terminal illnesses. Coincidentally, the camp opened June 20^th, 2004, the same day Ken Griffey Jr. hit his 500^th career home run. Also, Richard’s son, Kyle Petty, and his son, Adam Petty, were NASCAR drivers. Adam died in 2000 during a wreck at New Hampshire, and it was his dream to found the camp that became Victory Junction. He has two other children, Austin and Montgomery Lee, who will no doubt continue the family’s legacy.

Moving the conversation to hockey, the Hull family comes to mind first. Bobby Hull began play in 1957 and is considered one of the greatest left wingers of all time. He finished second in rookie of the year voting, and later became the first player ever to score more than 50 goals in a single season. His slapshot was once recorded at 118 mph and he could skate at nearly 30 mph. Along with Maurice “The Rocket” Richard, he was one of the greatest players of the Original Six era. Hull scored 610 goals and 560 assists over his career, won the Stanley Cup in 1961, won the Art Ross Trophy (most points in a season) three times, back to back Hart Memorial Trophies (league MVP) in 1965 and 66, and the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (awarded to the league’s best sportsman) in 1965.

His son, the great Brett Hull, may be even better. Brett played in the NHL from 1986 til 2005, scoring 741 goals. Only Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe have scored more than that. He has 650 career assists, and is the only person other than Gretzky to score 50 goals in his first 50 games more than once. He has won both the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Lady Byng Memorial trophy. He scored 33 career hat tricks, 38 power play goals in the playoffs (which is best all-time), 24 playoff game-winning goals (also best all-time), scored 70+ goals in a season three straight years (86 being his career best in 1990-91), and is the only player in hockey history to score 50 goals in a season in the NCAA, minor league hockey, and the NHL. Not to mention two Stanley Cup victories in 1998-99 with the Dallas Stars, and 2001-02 with the Detroit Red Wings.

Combined, Bobby and Brett Hull hold several hockey distinctions. They are the only father-son combination in any professional sport to both have their numbers retired. They are the only father-son team each with 50 goals in a season and 600 career goals, and the only combo to win the Hart Trophy and Lady Byng Trophy. Brett also honored his father by wearing his number 9 jersey for the last five games of his own career, with the Phoenix Coyotes, formerly the Winnipeg Jets that his father had played for late in his own career. Brett has a young son, Jude, that plays goaltender. Chances are the Hull family name will continue to thrive in the NHL.

I don’t want to make this too long, so I’ll start to wrap it up. Regardless of what sport you bonded with your dad over, whether it’s baseball, hockey, basketball, football, racing, golf, etc, it’s a memory worth holding on to. Go throw the football around, play a game of HORSE, sit down and watch the race. Do something to commemorate today if you’ve got the means to. Make Father’s Day special this year.

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