In these power rankings, Utley looks second to none

Chase Utley is putting together a run at a historic season in what might be the quietest way possible.

While many in Philadelphia have focused on the early season injury to reigning National League MVP Jimmy Rollins and the rapid strikeout rate of '06 MVP Ryan Howard, Utley is going about his business.

His business could soon have him on the brink of baseball history. Utley is leading all of baseball with 13 homers and is an early front-runner in his bid to become the third consecutive Phillie to win the MVP award.

And he's doing it all while being a second baseman.

There used to be a stigma attached to shortstops and their lack of power. But the run of Alex Rodriguez, Miguel Tejada and Nomar Garciaparra changed short into a power position.

Now the power vacuum is at second base. Utley is trying singlehandedly to change that this season.

The 13 homers he's hit are five more than any other player has at the position, and only four every-day second baseman have hit at least five.

Of the 18 second baseman in the National Baseball Hall of Fame, none of them are going to be remembered for their power.

There are some great second baseman in the Hall of Fame, including Rod Carew, Rogers Hornsby, Jackie Robinson, Joe Morgan and Ryne Sandberg. But of all of them, only one cracked the 300-home run mark: Hornsby, who finished with 301.

Hornsby's best season came in 1922, when he hit 42 homers and had 152 RBI for the St. Louis Cardinals. He topped the 30 home run mark just two more times in his 23-year career.

The best of the lot since the 1970s has been Sandberg, but he finished with 282, while Morgan had 268 homers and Carew just 92.

The most homers by a second baseman in a season is 43, which Davey Johnson did while playing for the Atlanta Braves in 1973. He hit 42 playing second and one while pinch hitting. Jeff Kent holds the career record for home runs by a second baseman with 342 entering Saturday, but he isn't likely to join Hornsby as a 300-homer Hall of Famer.

Utley already has 110 and could one day surpass Hornsby. In his last three full seasons, Utley has hit 82 homers. But that number is misleading because he was limited to 132 games last year. He still finished with 22 homers and 103 RBI.

While it is doubtful that Utley can continue at this pace, which would result in more than 55 homers, don't bet against it.

Teams can't afford to pitch around the 29-year-old because the top of the Phillies order is loaded with Rollins, Howard and Pat Burrell.

Even if the Phils phlop, watching Utley's run at history is reason enough to keep an eye on Philadelphia.

Local watch

John Lackey, Los Angeles Angels: The Angels' ace and former UT-Arlington player is getting closer to making his season debut. Lackey, who strained his triceps in spring training, has made three rehab starts for Rancho Cucamonga and will make his Angels debut later this month.

Jordan Walden, Los Angeles Angels: The former Mansfield pitcher has had a hard-luck season with Class A Cedar Rapids. Walden has made six starts but is just 1-3 despite his 3.03 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .240 off the right-hander, and he has 27 strikeouts in 32 2/3 innings.

Craig Italiano, Oakland: The former Flower Mound pitcher has been dazzling at Class A Kane County. After having his 2007 season ended after being hit by a line drive, the right-hander is off to a 4-0 start this season with 48 strikeouts in 34 innings.

Brad Furnish, St. Louis: Furnish, who pitched at TCU, has bounced between the rotation and bullpen for the Palm Beach Cardinals in the Florida State League. In his last eight innings, the lefty has given up just two earned runs and is now 3-2.

Charles Benoit, Pittsburgh: Benoit, a left-hander who played at Southlake Carroll, has struggled this season at Class A Lynchburg. In eight relief appearances, Benoit is 0-4 and has allowed 24 hits in 12 2/3 innings. He gave up just one run in his last three-inning outing.

Who's hot

Lance Berkman, Astros:

The Houston first baseman was hitting .295 May 3 but raised his average 73 points during the week. Berkman had six multi-hit games, including a five-hit game, while hitting three home runs and collecting nine RBI.

Who's not

Nick Swisher, White Sox: The outfielder had a rough week in the field and at the plate. He missed a diving attempt to save Gavin Floyd's no-hit bid in the ninth inning. He also had just three hits, dropping his average below .200.

Numbers game

0 Errors by Detroit's Brandon Inge in his 30 games entering Saturday at third base, center field, left field and catcher.

Most people just think it; he says it. You have to give him kudos for that. I've got that inside me, but that's where it stays.

__ Cleveland manager Eric Wedge on the recent tirade by Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen.

American League

Best team: It was a rare week for the Boston Red Sox as Jonathan Papelbon blew back-to-back saves against Detroit and Minnesota. But the Red Sox responded to the first blown save by ripping the Tigers on Thursday. They own the biggest lead in the AL, and David Ortiz is starting to heat up.

Rising: How about the Minnesota Twins? They trade their best pitcher and lose their center fielder to free agency. How do they respond? In a division loaded with Detroit and Cleveland, the Twins are the best team in the Central and have benefitted from the Johan Santana trade with Carlos Gomez, who hit for the cycle against the White Sox.

Falling: The Seattle Mariners were supposed to challenge Los Angeles for first place in the West, not battle Texas for last place in the division. But Seattle is struggling, having endured a 2-8 stretch in which its starting pitchers struggled and aces Erik Bedard and Felix Hernandez were beaten by the Rangers.

Worst team: The Detroit Tigers have found new ways to lose games, both with their offense and pitching. The Tigers cut ties with free agent signee Jacque Jones, and ace Justin Verlander

is off to a 1-6 start. It's the worst start by a Tigers starter since Mike Maroth went 0-9 to start the 2003 season.

National League

Best team: Beating the Arizona Diamondbacks is difficult. Beating ace Brandon Webb has been impossible. Webb is the odds-on favorite to win the Cy Young Award after opening the season 8-0. Webb has won all eight of his starts, and his ERA is a stellar 2.41.

Rising: Will someone please tell the Florida Marlins they're not supposed to be leading the NL East? Florida has three players with at least eight homers and six players with at least 14 RBI. Mike Jacobs leads the way with nine homers and 24 RBI.

Falling: It hasn't been a productive week for the Milwaukee Brewers. After winning a series in Chicago, Milwaukee's road trip continued when it should have stopped. The Brewers were swept by Houston and then swept by Florida. The offense totaled 16 runs in the six losses.

Worst team: San Diego is doing its best to go from a playoff near-miss to a complete mess. The Padres' offense is awful. Former Ranger Adrian Gonzalez is the only player with more than 16 RBI and the only player with more than four homers. Jim Edmonds and his .178 average were a bust.