Lance Berkman and Chipper Jones: Early NL Triple Crown Report

It has been over 70 years since the National League has seen a Triple Crown winner. Joe Medwick did it with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1937 with a .374 batting average, 31 HR, and an impressive 157 RBI.

This prestigious award has been thought by many to be somewhat extinct in the current era of players with high home-run totals and mediocre averages, but in the first two months of the 2008 season, there has been a glimmer of hope that this may be the year in which the Triple Crown re-emerges.

The leading candidate is Astros first baseman Lance Berkman. Berkman’s numbers so far have been simply amazing. Compiling 16 homers, 44 RBI, and the league’s second-best batting average of .389, gives reason why many believe he has the potential to end the season as the Triple Crown winner.

Batting average is the hardest statistical category out of the three to clinch, yet Berkman is putting himself in very good position to make a run for batting champ. The two power categories, home runs and runs batted in, are both currently being led by Berkman. While some say Berkman will cool off and eventually level-off on his average, there is no evidence to indicate that this will happen, given his recent hot streak of .500 in his past ten games.

If Kazuo Matsui and Miguel Tejada continue to put themselves in scoring position for Berkman, and he can keep his average in the high .300s, then Houston’s first baseman will be in good position to win the Triple Crown.

The second front-runner would have to be Atlanta’s third baseman Chipper Jones. Having adopted a more studious film routine, Jones has allowed himself to have a masterful approach at the plate, knowing exactly what he wants to do on every pitch, which is why he was the toughest out in all of baseball in April and early May.

Chipper currently leads the league in average with a .410 mark, but has fell behind in home runs with 11, and RBI with 32. While he ranks in the top eight in both of the power categories, Jones will have to catch up if there is any chance that he will bring the Triple Crown to Atlanta.

Although Lance Berkman currently sits in better position for this award, if Chipper can somehow keep his average above .400, it will be hard for anyone else to contend with him. If early June comes and Jones’ power numbers climb a bit more, he gives himself very good position to make a push for the Crown as well.

A more distant candidate is Albert Pujols, who has a .357 average, but only nine HR and 29 RBI thus far. While it would be smart to bet his home run and RBI totals will begin to shoot upward, it will be tough for the Cardinals' first baseman to finish at the top in batting.

Another player to mention is the Phillies second baseman Chase Utley. Utley has 14 HR and 31 RBI, but has only attained a .311 average so far this season. Unless he pulls off one of the most amazing hot streaks in the history of baseball, it is highly unlikely Utley will come close to a Triple Crown.

While it is still mid-May, any of these players can fall out of contention for the Triple Crown in a matter of weeks, as averages can take a downward spiral in a matter of no time.

However, Lance Berkman and Chipper Jones have put themselves in position to lead the league in average, home runs, and RBI. Only time will tell if one of these men can do something that hasn’t been done since 1937: win the National League Triple Crown.