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After watching Monday's Home Run Derby, I couldn't help but notice the names on the board just didn't carry the anticipation and ambiance of years gone by.

David Ortiz certainly has his place in history as a clutch power hitter in one of the most storied venues in all of baseball. However, he must have had the same feeling Yao Ming has standing amongst his fellow countrymen.

Well that was short.

By my count, first time All-Star outfielder Chris Young had five singles and one double in Anaheim Monday.  

Unfortunately for the Diamondback, it was not the well-placed-line-drive-derby. 

Eliminated in the first round in last place, Young hit just one ball out of the park while frequently voicing his displeasure with himself aloud.

"In the long run, I'd much rather have my line-drive swing than my home run swing," Young told azcentral.com.

The Yanks enter the 2010 All-Star break with the best record in baseball and are on pace for 103 victories. But the big news in Yankeeland this past week was the non-trade for Cliff Lee. Since that deal fell through, ESPN Insider is reporting that a Yanks deal for Cubs starting pitcher Ted Lilly “has legs.” What I don’t understand is the Yanks’ sudden obsession with starting pitching. Yes, yes, there are those old pitching adages:

Pitching wins championships.
You can never have enough pitching.

Cliff Lee was the first big name to get traded, and certainly no player on the block has been more discussed this season. Roy Oswalt, Dan Haren, Corey Hart, and Prince Fielder are the most recognizable of the remaining names that are being bandied about by sports commentators and trade "experts."

Still, others seem to be of interest to every team.

ANAHEIM--Every time he walked near the dugout finishing his home run round on the nice, breezy summer night at Angel Stadium, the crowds were as wild and terrifying as the craziest attractions at Disneyland.

Although the Cincinnati Reds ended the first half of the 2010 season with a four game skid, they are still sitting atop of the N.L. Central eight games above .500. They also lead their division rival, St. Louis, by one game. 

2002 was the last time the Reds were in playoff contention at the half-way mark and Cincinnati fans everywhere are eager to see if their beloved team will actually make a post season appearance.

We are now at the All-Star break and it's time to take a look at how the Mets can make the playoffs.

Right now, they are four games behind the Atlanta Braves for first place in the NL East, but they're only one game behind in the NL Wild Card race.

It's probably the easier route to the playoffs for the Mets, especially seeing how the Braves are capable of playing over the weekend, and how deep their starting rotation is.

Looking at the Wild Card race, there are five teams other than the Mets who will be competing for the spot.

This article is part three of a series of articles looking at the Cubs' not-so-distant future. To read part three, which takes a look at the middle infielders and catchers, follow this link.

The Cubs have pitching.

The rotation of Ted Lilly, Ryan Dempster, Carlos Silva, Tom Gorzelanny, and Randy Wells has been good enough to post a FIP of 3.87 (fourth in MLB), an xFIP of 3.99 (second in MLB), and a total of 55 quality starts (second in MLB). And that's all without removing Carlos Zambrano's less-than-stellar outings from the bunch.

Let's face it: The AL Central is the Minnesota Twins' division to lose, and they did just about everything they could to lose it in the last month or so before the All-Star break. The starting pitching was atrocious and the offense faltered. 

So what should the Twins do? With Mauer and every starting pitcher besides Pavano underperforming, it's looking pretty rough. I've got a few ideas to entertain:

Trade for Dan Haren or Ted Lilly

Most baseball fans believe success in the Home Run Derby translates to a power outage in the second half of the season. Josh Hamilton in 2008 comes to mind, but it would be foolish to make assumptions based on that one particular instance.

To answer this presumption, I tallied the first and second half home run totals of each Home Run Derby winner since 2000. The results may surprise you.