Rankings/List

Team of the Week: San Francisco Giants (pictured above)

Bust of the Week: San Diego Padres

As we approach the end of the fifth week of Major League Baseball's 2009 Regular Season, teams are beginning to settle in and the contenders are beginning to emerge from the pretenders.

30. Washington Nationals

The Washington Nationals showed their true, weak colors in April, going 5-16.

But they have a surprisingly good offense. Ryan Zimmerman continues to crush the ball, hitting .289 with five homers. Adam Dunn has six homers and a .310 average. Nick Johnson has made an admirable return, with a .338 batting clip.

However, the pitching is what's killing this team. No starter has an ERA below 4.44, and the bullpen is the worst in the majors. Last night's 9-4 loss was no exception when the bullpen blew a lead late in the game.

Face of the Franchise:  Luis Gonzalez
Manager: Bob Brenly

C - Damian Miller
1B - Mark Grace
2B - Tony Womack
3B - Matt Williams
SS - Jay Bell
OF - Luis Gonzalez
OF - Steve Finley
OF - Danny Bautista
DH - Chad Tracy
Bench: 1B/OF Conor Jackson, 2B Orlando Hudson, SS Stephen Drew, OF Eric Byrnes

Right now, I am sitting in the Editing Suite for my college, and my group members and I are working on a documentary on farming.

Even on an off day, and while working on something that has nothing to do with it, I am still thinking about the Mets—and with a big weekend series with the Phillies coming up, all of the rage of the past couple of seasons has risen from the depths of me.

So I got myself thinking: Who do Mets fans dislike the most when it comes to the Philly Players?

Time to put on your John Denver CD and take a look at Colorado’s baseball history. Rocky Mountain High, Colorado. As you might expect, the lineup looks formidable while the pitching staff looks ridiculous.

Face of the Franchise:  Todd Helton

Manager: Clint Hurdle 

It's Thursday, and the weekend is almost upon us. If you're like me, you start looking forward to the weekend on, well, Monday. But before we dig into this full plate of steamy weekend baseball, why not look back and reminisce about the pitchers that flat out got it done last week. These guys are already looking like Cy Young contenders, with stat lines that make baseball fan's eyes go wide upon first view.

AL:

You sit on your couch, looking at the clock, waiting in limbo for the hand to hit the number that signals the start of the professional game you have been waiting for all day. You would give anything to be there, but because the ticket price is out of your range, you settle onto the couch with your girlfriend.

After a long day of work, you are tired and want to relax by watching your game. You really enjoy that your girlfriend is making the effort to watch with you, but you could really go without the questions about the game.

Some baseball fans will tell you that the most exciting play in the game is the triple.

I can see the logic. It is, indeed, electrifying to watch a player charge around the base paths, making that turn past second base as the crowd noise swells to a crescendo.

“He’s trying for three!“

The ball is retrieved from the outfield, and relayed into the infield. Will there be a play at third base?

Yeah, I can see where that’s exciting.

Starters

Yovani Gallardo

Gallardo has been impressive this season. So far, he has pitched 26.2 innings and given up 19 hits and 11 runs while accumulating 23 strikeouts, two wins, and an ERA of 3.71. That doesn't include his impressive outing today against the Pirates, in which he threw eight scoreless innings, gave up just two hits, and struck out 11 batters.

He has now managed to lower his ERA to 2.86 and boasts a 34:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Heck, he even hit a home run, which turned out to be the only run of the game.

Often times, the difference between a playoff team and a .500 team is how many games each wins and loses in the middle innings.

When the skipper lurches out of the dugout to relieve his starter, it's those six to nine outs to close out games that are the hardest to consistently secure. Playoff teams have guys who can bridge the gap from starter to closer, while average teams often find ways to let other squads back in the game.