No one has won a Triple Crown in 43 years — the last, of course, belonging to Carl Yastrzemski. Miguel Cabrera has given himself a chance, but like everyone else who has tried, he faces long odds.
Since Yastrzemski hit .326 with 44 home runs and 121 RBIs in 1967, 41 players have led their league in two of those three categories.
The really difficult part of the feat is to be a batting champion who also delivers power numbers. Thirty-eight of the 41 two-category leaders were cases of hitters leading in homers and RBIs. Matt Holliday (2007), Todd Helton (2000) and Joe Torre (1971) led in batting average and RBIs but fell short in homers.
At the All-Star break, Cabrera led in batting average and RBIs while having two fewer home runs than Jose Bautista. But it immediately became clear how difficult it will be to maintain those leads while adding a lead in home runs.
Cabrera was leading Josh Hamilton by percentage points at the break — hitting .3461538 to Hamilton's .346041. But Hamilton went 3-for-4 against the Red Sox in the first game back Thursday, jumping five points ahead of Cabrera.
Bautista, hitting .237, was having a season like the White Sox's Carlos Quentin (.242-19-62 at the break) and the Diamondbacks' Mark Reynolds (.214-20-56).
"You sacrifice your batting average when you swing for a little more power," Bautista said. "For him to do both at the same time, it's unreal."
Cabrera led the American League in home runs in 2008, his first season after being dealt from the Marlins to the Tigers. He's a career .314 hitter who finished in the top three in the National League in hitting in 2005 and '06 and finished third in RBIs in 2007 (NL) and '08 (AL).
"I've known the guy for a long time," Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez told the Detroit Free Press. "Everybody knows it's pretty tough. It's hard. But I wouldn't be surprised."
A's manager Bob Geren is at least as optimistic, saying Cabrera has a "50-50" shot to pull off baseball's rarest feat.
"He has as good of a shot as anyone at the batting title," Geren said. "And he's going to take his walks, so he won't get himself out trying to hit higher. Home run-wise, he plays in a big park, but it doesn't seem to bother him any."
In 1967, Yastrzemski batted third. He had Reggie Smith, George Scott and Tony Conigliaro hitting behind him and a patchwork cast in front of him.
Cabrera, the Tigers' cleanup hitter, has had Magglio Ordonez in front of him and white-hot rookie Brennan Boesch behind him,
"I have two guys, Magglio and Boesch, who are having good years," Cabrera said at the All-Star Game. "So it's why I have these numbers. These guys help me a lot. I see better pitches. I see good pitches to hit, and I see a lot of guys on base."
Can he hit enough himself to win a batting title? That's the biggest question.
Nice timing: The Rays may have turned two 2010 playoff races with a trade late last August. They sent Scott Kazmir to the Angels for Sean Rodriguez and two minor-leaguers, which cleared room in their rotation for Wade Davis.
That part of the trade was easy. But did Rays manager Joe Maddon and general manager Andrew Friedman also know Kazmir was running on fumes?
He has been a mess for the Angels, going 7-9 with a 6.92 ERA in his 17 starts. That included a 13-run beating July 10 at Oakland when manager Mike Scioscia showed him no mercy.
Scioscia said he left Kazmir in that long because he was going to get a long break after the start, but most felt he was trying to make a statement to owner Arte Moreno about the need to add pitching. He stayed in the rotation despite going 0-4 with 30 runs allowed over 192/3 innings in his last four starts before the break. The Rays must be thrilled not to be making difficult decisions with the 26-year-old Kazmir, a two-time All-Star.
Questions at home: Cliff Lee should be a great addition for the Rangers. But he lost to the Orioles in his Texas debut, serving up three home runs, and is being asked about his comfort level at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
Lee is 4-4 with a 7.33 ERA at Rangers Ballpark, allowing seven homers in 501/3 career innings. It has been the toughest place to pitch for him.
"Obviously, it's a hitter's park, no one would deny that," Lee said. "Different dimensions, different weather. I can't change that. I just have to be better at keeping the ball down and getting ground balls."
Lee is scheduled to face the Angels on Thursday in Texas.
Due diligence: Mariners president Chuck Armstrong wasn't happy that one of the players acquired from the Rangers in the Lee trade has a criminal history. Josh Lueke, a Double-A pitcher, spent months behind bars after pleading no contest to a charge of false imprisonment with violence against a woman.
Armstrong flew Lueke into Seattle for a meeting with GM Jack Zduriencik and farm director Pedro Grifol before before issuing him a uniform with Double-A West Tenn.
"We were satisfied with the interview, and it's an issue that's behind us," Zduriencik said.
The last word: "Home teams play better at home." — Phillies manager Charlie Manuel, commenting on the NL winning home-field advantage in the World Series.
Phil Rogers covers baseball for the Chicago Tribune.