Looking Back At the Cubs First Half

Before the Cubs begin the second half of the season I thought it would be only fitting to reflect back on the first half and to hand out some awards to the players.

The Cubs overall record so far is 57-38, which is tied for the best in the majors and their home record is a phenomenal 37-12 and their road record is 20-26. If the Cubs continue their winning ways at home and can finish at least .500 or better on the road they should be just fine in the race for the Division. They currently hold a 4.5 game lead on the Cardinals and a 5 game lead on the Brewers.

The Cubs hitting has been outstanding with the team batting .281, which ranks first in the league and third in the majors behind only the Rangers and Red Sox. They rank first in league and second in the majors in runs with 507. They have hit 107 home runs, which ranks fifth in the league and eighth in all of the majors.

The pitching has been just as great as the offense with their 3.89 ERA, which ranks third in the league and ninth in the majors. The starters for the Cubs have a combined record of 40-25 with a 3.88 ERA clearly the most dominate staff in the league.

Now on to the awards:

The first award goes out to the MVP for the Cubs.

The MVP for the Cubs thus far has to be Geovany Soto who has not only batted .288 with 16 home runs and 56 RBIs but has also built a great rapport with the pitchers as a rookie. That simply speaks volumes in my opinion. You can agree or disagree with my pick, but Geo is my MVP!

My Most Outstanding Hitter award has to go to Aramis Ramirez who is batting .285 with 17 home runs and has been a RBI machine with 66. He ranks first in both Home Runs and RBIs for the Cubs. Aramis is my most outstanding hitter so far. Who is yours?

My next award is for Most Outstanding Pitcher. This award has to go to Ryan Dempster who has a 10-4 record and a 3.25 ERA with 104 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.18. Dempster is my Most Outstanding Pitching thus far, who would be yours?

The next award is for the Most Surprising Player thus far. This award would surely go to Kerry Wood who has been awesome out of the bullpen with his 24 saves and his 3.02 ERA. Wood by far deserves this award above anyone else on the team. I have my Most Surprising Player in Kerry Wood, do you agree with me?

The final award is not necessary an award for a player but for the Most Memorable Moment So Far. The most memorable moment so far this season has to be the comeback against the Colorado Rockies. Down 9-1 after five innings the Cubs overcame an eight-run deficit to tie the game at nine until Mark Derosa's game winning home run to give the Cubs a 10-9 lead and subsequent win.

Hopefully, the Cubs can continue their winning ways and bring the fans many more memories to cherish for a lifetime. Hey, how does a World Series berth sound or how does a World Series against the White Sox sound?

I know for sure the fans of Chicago would be ECSTATIC BEYOND BELIEF to see a World Series that pitted both Chicago teams against each other. Until then lets just let the second half of the season play out to see where the Cubs stand come September.