The Second Season : Anderson, Maris Are Ones to Watch

The Babe Ruth Museum is a few relay throws from Baltimore’s Camden Yards, and with all that is happening at Oriole Park this season, one wonders, will they have to add a Brady Anderson wing to the Ruth shrine?

Thirty home runs at the All-Star break. For Brady Anderson. The Orioles’ leadoff batter. A guy who 11 years ago was an Anteater, chasing fly balls for a college, UC Irvine, that doesn’t even field a team today.

Sound crazy? Not in this year’s American League, where Oakland’s Mark McGwire, with 28 homers is also threatening Roger Maris’ single-season record of 61.

And where five players--Belle, Seattle’s Edgar

Martinez, Chicago’s Frank Thomas, Boston’s Mo Vaughn and Baltimore’s Rafael Palmeiro--are on course to drive in 145 or more runs, and Martinez, with 42 doubles, is on pace to shatter Earl Webb’s major league record of 67.

The power numbers have been so mind-boggling that even Anderson can’t keep up. Asked for the millionth time last week how a guy who only once hit more than 16 homers in a season could be on such a streak, he said, “Wait, I’ll come up with a good one.”

Cozy Camden Yards, extensive weight training, and under-equipped pitchers throwing tightly wound baseballs at a soup-can-sized strike zone have plenty to do with Anderson’s gaudy statistics.

Then again, it could be Anderson’s choice of lumber.

“These haven’t been corked yet,” he said recently, leaning on a box of new bats.

Or, perhaps, it’s his winter training regimen, which includes water-skiing on frigid Lake Tahoe. “It’s a good workout,” he said. “Of course, there’s always the chance of some adverse effects, like catching pneumonia.”

Will Anderson or McGwire catch Maris? Will the Chicago White Sox catch the Cleveland Indians in the Central Division? Will the Detroit Tigers beat out the 1930 Philadelphia Phillies for the major leagues’ worst earned-run average?

Some more questions--and a few answers--as the second half begins:

WHO WILL STAY HOT?

--The White Sox. They lead the league in ERA with four better-than-average starters--Kevin Tapani, Wilson Alvarez, Alex Fernandez and James Baldwin--and a versatile bullpen that includes confident closer Roberto Hernandez, who acknowledged being so nervous before games last season that he felt sick but has craved save situations in 1996. Add a potent offense, solid defense and a fiery, Tony Phillips-induced edge, and you have a race in the Central Division.

--The Yankees. Great starting pitching, an even better bullpen, a balanced lineup that blends power and speed, deep bench. . . . yes, even with Darryl Strawberry, the Yankees could reach the World Series for the first time since 1981.

--Frank Thomas and Mo Vaughn: They have what every power hitter needs--protection. Chicago’s Harold Baines, batting .314 with 15 homers and 62 RBIs, and Robin Ventura, .282 with 19 homers and 55 RBIs, and Boston’s Jose Canseco, .305 with 26 homers and 63 RBIs, make it almost impossible to pitch around two of the league’s top batters.

WHO WILL COOL OFF?

--The Texas Rangers. They have led their division seven times at the All-Star break but have yet to make the playoffs. They can score in bunches--who can forget Texas 26, Baltimore 7?--but their offense can’t carry an overachieving pitching staff all season. And that bullpen! Would you trust Mike Henneman with a one-run lead and the division title on the line?

--Shawn Boskie. The journeyman was the Angels’ best pitcher in the first half of the season, and the way things are going, heck, the Angels could trade Boskie (9-3) to a contender for prospects this month. But the right-hander has a 9-22 record and 5.22 ERA in July, August and September.

--Roger Pavlik. Heavy hitting Texas is one of the few teams that can have a pitcher with a 4.82 ERA and an 11-2 record but don’t expect this All-Star selection to hold up in Texas’ sweltering summer heat.

--Alex Rodriguez. Seattle’s 20-year-old phenom is batting .336 with 17 homers and 65 RBIs, but he made the cover of Sports Illustrated last week, and you know what that means: Jinx City, here we come.

--Andy Pettitte. The young Yankee left-hander is 13-4 with a 3.81 ERA but is experiencing elbow problems that could hamper him in the second half.

--Brady Anderson. He has to . . . doesn’t he?

WHO WILL GET HOT?

--Seattle. The Mariners without Randy Johnson and Ken Griffey Jr. are only four games behind the Rangers. Imagine their surge later this month when they get the league’s best pitcher and best player back. Plus, they seem to play better against the Rangers and Angels.

--Cleveland. The defending league-champion Indians sagged to 14-14 in June and aired their beefs in an emotional team meeting. “Our intensity level is down, guys haven’t pulled for each other,” shortstop Omar Vizquel said. “Someone needs to step up.” Amazing. Only in Cleveland can a team be 17 games over .500 and underachieving.

--Albert Belle. The Indian slugger is batting .198 in his last 22 games, but if August and September are anything like last August and September, when he had 31 homers and 62 RBIs, Belle will once again be a menace to league pitchers, not just society.

DON’T BE SURPRISED IF:

--Angel Manager Marcel Lachemann joins his brother, Rene, on a long fishing trip later this summer. Rene was fired as Florida’s manager Sunday, and Marcel seems to be talking himself into the unemployment line. He has taken full blame for at least five losses this season--some justifiably, some not--and has been extremely critical of himself. After an ugly loss in Oakland last week, he said, “The manager screwed it up in so many ways.” New Angel boss Tony Tavares reads the papers and thinks, “Maybe Lachemann is right.”

--The Angels trade Garret Anderson for a top-flight pitcher--latest rumored deal has Anderson going to Philadelphia for Curt Schilling. The general manager says he’s not looking to trade his left fielder, but with Chuck Finley and Mark Langston aging, Jim Abbott fading and triple-A slugger Todd Greene looking more like the Angels’ designated hitter, and not catcher, of the future, the Angels may soon realize that the need for a good, young pitcher is stronger than the need for four great outfielders.

--Cleveland makes a major deal this month. The Indians reportedly offered designated hitter Eddie Murray, pitcher Albie Lopez and utility player Jeromy Burnitz to Baltimore for Bobby Bonilla and Jeffrey Hammonds, but the Orioles turned it down. Cleveland now is rumored to be discussing a Carlos Baerga-for-Gary Sheffield deal with the Florida Marlins. This much is sure: The Indians are getting restless.

PREDICTIONS

Division titlists: New York, Cleveland, Seattle.

Wild-card winner: Chicago.

League champion: New York.