MLB Weekend Update: Albert Pujols And Some Other Guys

El Hombre Looks Healthy Against Cubbies
We're far enough into the season where an every-day hitter really can't "fix" his statistics with just a few great games. Still, what Albert Pujols did against the Cubs this weekend should allay most concerns that he's hobbled by some mysterious injury. In just three games, Pujols hit four home runs -- including consecutive walkoff jobs, a historic sort of feat -- and boosted his season line from .265/.335/.412 to .278/.353/.473. Those latter numbers are still well below his career figures, of course. But I'm guessing the Cubs are not alone in expecting big things from Pujols this summer.

Healthy Rangers Sweep Tribe
Exactly two weeks ago, the Rangers were in first place, but with an uninspiring 24-23 record. That evening, both Nelson Cruz and Josh Hamilton returned to the lineup from the Disabled List. And while it's a sabermetric commonplace to suggest that it's easy to overestimate the impact of one or even two players, it's also hard to ignore what's happened since Cruz and Hamilton rejoined the lineup. After sweeping four straight from the Indians, the Rangers have won nine of their last 12 games while their two healthy sluggers combined for eight home runs and 23 RBI.

Two Perfect No-Names
Alexi Ogando hasn't really been a no-name since granted a slot in the Rangers' rotation at the end of spring training. And Dillon Gee's somewhat well-known in at least one of the Five Boroughs. Still, both have to be considered huge surprises after winning their starts this weekend and becoming 2011's first 6-0 pitchers in the majors. Ogando is a converted reliever who started only three games as a professional pitcher before this season ... and won exactly zero of those. The Mets' Gee did win 13 games as a triple-A starter last season, but also posted a 4.96 ERA and opened this season back in Buffalo. Elevated only because of injuries, Gee now sports the lowest ERA among the Mets' starters.

You Can't Hope to Stop Ryan Vogelsong ...
And perhaps not even to contain him. Just to recap ... Vogelsong entered this season with 10 wins, 22 losses, and a 5.86 career ERA. He hadn't pitched in the majors since 2006, having divided his time since then between triple-A and Japan (where he wasn't particularly effective). And now? Pressed into duty only because the Giants were desperate for a starting pitcher after Barry Zito went down, Vogelsong is 4-1 with a 1.68 ERA after tossing eight brilliant innings Sunday to beat the Rockies? Go ahead. Just try and explain this one.

Winning's Easy Once You Get the Hang of It
Remember when Toronto's Jo-Jo Reyes just couldn't win a baseball game? On the 25th of May, Reyes got hammered by the Yankees and became just the third pitcher in Major League history to go 28 straight starts without winning. Which meant he had a pretty good chance of actually breaking the record. But he didn't. In his next start, Reyes pitched the first complete game of his career and beat the Indians 11-1. And Sunday he pitched into the seventh inning and beat the Indians for his second straight victory. He just had to learn how to win.