Chicago Baseball: Cubs Hot at the Plate, White Sox Hot on the Mound

Every Chicago baseball fan, regardless of which team they root for, knows that both clubs are in first place in their respective divisions.  There is reason to believe that winning baseball is making a legitimate return to the city.  After all, three years after the White Sox ended an 88-year World Series drought in the Second City, the Cubs currently have the best record in all of baseball.

If you look at the Major League team stats, you'll recognize that the two are in first for different reasons.  Both clubs are leading all of baseball in the two most important categories—the Cubs have the best hitting lineup and the Sox have the best pitching staff.  Let's break these down a bit.

The Cubs' team batting average sits at .286, one percentage point in front of the Texas Rangers.  The title of best hitter on the team belongs to Ryan Theriot at .330.  Through Wednesday, that's good enough for fourth in the National League.  Their team on-base percentage on also leads the bigs at .365.  Theriot and Aramis Ramirez have respective OBPs of .418 and .412.

The Cubs also lead the NL in hits, RBI, runs scored, doubles, and total bases.  Theriot's 75 hits are tied for fifth in the NL.  Ramirez, who may finally be the Cubs' first legitimate third baseman since Ron Santo, leads the team in RBI with 41. 

Derrek Lee has scored 43 runs and touched 128 bases safely, more than anyone else on the team.  Geovany Soto's 19 doubles are tied for fourth in the NL.  Like the crowds at Wrigley Field and now the Chicago weather, the bats on the team are hot—and the runners they advance are very smart on the base paths.

On the South Side of town, the pitching has been superlative.  The White Sox, whose staff was written off as having only Mark Buehrle, Javier Vazquez, and Bobby Jenks to carry the team, are boasting the best ERA in all of baseball at 3.31. 

The two ERA leaders of the staff, Jose Contreras and John Danks, are ranked fifth and sixth in the American League at 2.76 and 2.88 respectively.  The team has also given up the fewest runs (220) and earned runs (197) in the bigs.  They are also tied with Oakland for giving up both the fewest hits (478) and home runs (38) in the league. 

Vazquez is third in the AL with 77 strikeouts and 8.81 strikeouts per nine innings pitched, and fourth with a 4.53 strikeout-to-walk ratio.  Gavin Floyd and Contreras are third and fourth in the AL in opponent's batting average at .196 and .215, respectively. 

Floyd is second in the AL in hits per nine innings pitched with 6.31.  Set-up man Scott Linebrink leads the league in holds with 14.  On a team where the offense is mostly inconsistent, this pitching staff is crucial to success.

Whether you like hitting or pitching, Chicago is the place to be right now.  It is important that both teams keep these going in order to get to the playoffs.  The last time both clubs made it past the regular season was when they met in the 1906 World Series. 

Cubs fans have waited a century to see their team win it all again. Chicago baseball fans have been waiting longer for both teams to make it.  Will this finally be the year?  Look off the coast of Lake Michigan to find out.