You would have thought that in the age of performance-enhancers, somebody would have seriously challenged for a Triple Crown by now.
Carl Yastrzemski is the last to achieve the feat - leading his league in batting average, home runs and RBI in the same season - and it's been 43 years. The last to do it in the National League was Joe "Ducky" Medwick, 73 years ago (1937).
The current player who seems to have the best shot every year is the Cardinals' Albert Pujols, who is just about always among the league leaders in all three categories. It's doing it at the same time that's proved elusive.
Pujols, as of Sept. 8, ranks first in the NL in homers, third in RBI and sixth in batting average. The Reds' Joey Votto is right there, too (second in average and homers and fourth in RBI).
But the guy who has the best shot this season is somebody who is in his first full year in the majors, who didn't even make the NL All-Star team, who has changed teams three times in the last four years. It's Colorado Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, a 24-year-old Venezuelan who is rapidly becoming one of the game's best players.
Who is Gonzalez, you might ask? "CarGo" - love the nickname - was a top prospect for the Diamondbacks and A's, but was sent packing in blockbuster trades that sent Dan Haren to Arizona before the 2008 season and Matt Holliday to Oakland before 2009. Neither Haren nor Holliday play for those teams anymore, by the way. Think the Diamondbacks and A's might want do-overs?
Gonzalez (.340, 32 HR, 100 RBI, 23 SB) is a brief power surge away from leading the league in all three categories. As of Sept. 8, he has a sizable lead in the batting race (probably the toughest category for a power hitter to win) over Votto and leads by one in RBI. Gonzalez is four behind Pujols in home runs with 32.
So does Gonzalez have a legitimate shot at a Triple Crown? Some people might think so, but there's a reason it hasn't been done since the Lyndon Johnson administration. It's still a long shot. But if anybody will do it this season, it's Gonzalez.
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