But at least the All-Star break gives us a chance to catch our breaths. The break comes a week later than usual this year, so we are well past halfway. In fact the trading deadline and the stretch run are coming all too quickly. With that in mind some burning questions need to be answered, like�

IS DONTRELLE WILLIS THE REAL DEAL??? The jury hasn�t deliberated on that one yet. You can say that Dontrelle has made an immediate splash that ranks right up there with Hideo Nomo in 1995, Fernando Valenzuela in 1981, and Mark Fidrych in 1976. What those three had in common is that all three phenom rookies started hitting turbulence shortly after their all-star appearances. Nomo would go on a downward spiral for nearly four years before hitting rock bottom. Valenzuela was a sensation who was nearly unscored upon in April and May. Nando started to get touched up in June before something called a two-month players strike interrupted his momentum. Valenzuela would go on a to a solid career.

For those of you who haven�t seen his profile on ESPN Classic, Fidrych took the baseball world by storm with an 11-1 record after a May call-up, highlighted by a memorable nationally televised complete game v. the Yankees � and would be called to start the �76 All-Star Game. That�s when things started to go south, as �the Bird� would be pounded in what would quickly become a National League rout (as what happened literally every year in those days). The eccentric Fidrych would only be a .500 pitcher in the second-half, perhaps slowed by the national spotlight, as nearly every start (both home and away) were before huge crowds � but still won the ERA title finishing at 2.34. Fidrych would be sidelined by a knee injury during Spring Training of �77 (while enthusiastically jumping after fly balls in BP), but return again in May � flashing some of his �76 form before suffering an arm injury that would lead to a way pre-mature end of his career.

Willis has some of the same qualities of Nomo, Valenzuela, and Fidrych. Dontrelle has the funky windup of a Fernando and Nomo, along with some of the excitability of Fidrych. Like Fidrych, Dontrelle has managed to make the All-Star game even though he did not get called up until May � compiling a 9-1 record with a 2.08 ERA, along with nearly a strikeout an inning. Now for the hard part, can Willis keep it up??? Keep in mind that you could had seen Willis with the Class A Kane County Cougars at this time last year. Willis would also be shutdown with a shoulder problem later on in the year. But Willis was impressive in A ball � posting a 12-2 record and 1.83 ERA, and was also the Marlins organization Pitcher of the Month for both May and June, and would be listed as the system�s fourth-best overall prospect at the end of the year. Also, class A to MLB All-Star is not all that unusual these days � just look at Albert Pujols.

But chances are opponents will fare better with Willis as they face him for the second and third times. Historically, pitching is the area where a raw rookie can assert himself immediately. But like with Nomo/Fernando etc., hitters are watching tapes of his high leg kick and will adjust accordingly. Willis is also a candidate for an early shutdown if the team falls out of contention and the arm starts barking. However, the impressive strikeout totals do bode well, and Willis should prove not to be a fluke.

IT MAY BE LIMA TIME NOW - BUT FOR HOW LONG???

AND WHAT ABOUT JOSE LIMA??? � Lima is a fantastic case study, and proves how the fortunes of a pitcher can go from the highest high to the lowest low. Just ask Nomo and Tim Wakefield. Remember back in �99 when Nomo couldn�t even make the Cubs roster and in desperation had to re-prove himself with the Brewers and Tigers over the next two years??? At that point few thought Hideo would ever restore himself to All-Star form. Which brings us back to Lima, who was a workhorse in both 1998 (233.1 IP) and �99 (246.1 IP). Lima won 37 games in those two years, and was a must for CDM in �99 in particular � winning 21 games with a 3.58 ERA. But then things fell apart. Lima was touched on late in the �99 season and would completely fall apart thereafter, compiling ERA�s of 6.65, 5.54, and 7.77. It was said in 2000-�01 that being a �fly-ball� pitcher in Houston�s new park was hurting him, but a move to Detroit�s spacious park did not help him neither. Lima is on record for expressing his un-happiness in being used by the Tigers in mop-up/take one for the team type drubbings in blow-out situations last year. Of course, that is when a struggling pitcher is going to be utilized.

Lima appeared to be out of the MLB picture entirely, as he started the year with the Newark Independent League team (along with Rickey Henderson). But as often happens these day, a team found a need for him � in this case Kansas City. Suddenly, Lima found himself pitching the best ball in his career � ripping off a quick 5-0 record along with a 2.52 ERA.

So do you dare consider Lima for the CDM Challenge??? History says probably not. Lima has never been the greatest strikeout pitcher and only has 15 punchouts in 39.1 IP. Also, Lima�s career ERA still stands at a hefty 5.05. And I imagine opposing AL hitters are retrieving the diskette on how to hit Lima's junk as I speak. But Lima does have pitching in the Al Central going for him, which means plenty of starts v. Detroit and Cleveland � along with the slumping White Sox and Twins. Currently, Lima does stand as one of the better pitching options in this offensively challenged division. Believe Lima at your own risk�

WHO ELSE WILL THE DODGERS ACQUIRE AND TURN INTO A FANTASY STIFF??? LA wasted no time at the break, acquiring Jeromy Burnitz along with bringing 44-year old Rickey Henderson out of Newark exile. Burnitz is actually having one of his better seasons in a while, hitting .274 along with 18 home runs and 45 RBI in just 65 games. You could say LA could slow down the power totals, but Shea Stadium (below sea level) isn�t exactly a bandbox neither. Jeromy is also a So-Cal product, so he�ll be pleased by that along with also going to a contender. Burnitz�s contract also expires after this year, which made him ripe to deal.

But the Dodgers are not through, and no established star seems safe from the threat of landing where offensive stats go to die. Carlos Beltran??? Mike Lowell??? Melvin Mora??? LA is interested in landing any or all of them. The organization did not give up any of it�s surplus minor league pitching in the Burnitz trade, so they will have that to deal with.

The good news is that the Cubs also appear to be a player in grabbing an outfield or third base bat, as they look for a Corey Patterson replacement. Beltran and Lowell sound much better in Wrigley Field than Chavez Ravine at this point.

HOW WILL RANDY JOHNSON AND CURT SCHILLING DO IN THE SECOND HALF??? The prevailing thought is that the D-Backs �Big Two� may be especially deadly since both are well rested. Perhaps well rested, but perhaps rusty as well. Exhibit �A� was Schilling�s return against the Giants, which saw him touched up a bit. Barring set-backs, Randy Johnson could return to the rotation this Sunday. He was touched up a bit in his final rehab start - but did throw 66 strikes in 84 pitches. It�s going to take a few starts before I make a determination with the Unit, has his problematic knee is now described as arthritic.

HOW WILL THE PLAYOFF RACES SHAPE UP??? As if on cue, Toronto has gone in it�s mid-season swoon and is now suddenly nine games out in the division and seven games behind in the wild card. Kansas City has now also bolted out to a seven game lead over the slumping White Sox and Twins. Boston and Oakland are hanging around the divisional races and are also neck-and-neck for the Wild Card. That should go down to the final week and will make the likes of Zito, Mulder, Hudson, and Pedro gold come September. The Yankees and Seattle look like the best bets for post-season, although they are not locks neither.

Look for Atlanta to be resting many of its regulars in September, as the Braves have a 8 � game lead in the division and a 4 � game lead in the battle for home field advantage. Houston, St. Louis, and the Cubs should battle well into September in the Central (although the Cubs have fallen to .500). I would include Cincinnati (6 � back) in that picture, although then I would have to include Pittsburgh (7 � back) as well. In the west San Francisco is five games up on surging Arizona, whom is a game behind Philadelphia for the Wild Card. Los Angeles, Montreal, and even Florida are all above .500 as well and look to remain players in the playoff race. At the very least, that leaves at least 14 teams that will have something to shoot for into the final month.

WHY IS BUD STILL TORN UP OVER LAST YEAR�S TIE??? I�m still trying to figure out the big deal on that one. At least last year�s 7-7 deadlock provided one of the best played All-Star games in years, ditto to this year�s 7-6 come from behind effort for the AL, a game that reminded me a little of 1971 at Tiger Stadium when everyone was going upper tank (or in Reggie Jackson�s case beyond that). If we were able to revise history and resolve last year�s game in the 12th or 13th inning, then the sportswriters would had bitched about these games going past 1 AM ET.

A SPORTINGNEWS.COM article this week revealed 10 of the venues using the controversial QuesTec system � a devise that is used to police the umpires calling of balls and strikes. The ten ballparks mentioned in the article were Yankee Stadium, Shea Stadium, Arizona, Anaheim, Boston, Cleveland, Houston, Milwaukee (woo-hoo!!!), Oakland, and Tampa Bay. Previous wire stories have indicated that there were actually 14 QuesTec parks. The Mets Tom Glavine has been among the most vocal critics of the system, with Glavine having a 6.75 ERA at home v. 2.82 on the road. Other star pitchers in QuesTec venues include Barry Zito (2.88 home/3.70 road), Mark Mulder (1.91 home/4.53 road), Tim Hudson (2.34 home/3.47 road), Pedro Martinez (3.75 home/1.61 road), Roger Clemens (4.45 home/3.00 road), Mike Mussina (2.34 home/4.56 road), David Wells (5.22 home/2.43 road), Roy Oswalt (2.96 home/3.48 road), and Wade Miller (4.31 home/4.96 road). So despite QuesTec Zito, Mulder, Hudson, Mussina, Oswalt and Mulder do markedly better at home while Glavine, Pedro, Clemens, and Wells have done better on the road. Pedro�s splits are skewed somewhat by one awful home start in particular. It is very notable to document Oswalt and Miller�s success at home v. the road despite the home bandbox the Astros pitch in. These splits also document how dominating the Oakland starters are at home � big brother or not watching. So that�s six pitchers doing better at home v. four who do better on the road � I consider QuesTec�s impact to be marginal at best.

True or false, the highest team home batting average in the majors, along with the biggest discrepancy between home and road averages belong to the Colorado Rockies. Wrong, and wrong. The Boston Red Sox have the highest team batting average at .294, with Toronto second at .289. St. Louis is the highest NL team (and third overall) with an impressive .287. The Rockies are tied for eighth in MLB and third in the NL at .278. Shockingly, the Rockies are a distant second to the Red Sox in team BA at home. The Red Sox are hitting an incredible .332 at Fenway compared to the Rockies .302 at Coors Field. The Red Sox hit a respectable .265 on the road (tied for ninth overall) while Colorado hits .240 (ahead of only Detroit). That gives the Red Sox a 67 point differential between home and road compared to a 62-point difference for the Rockies.

The biggest loser for right now in the Ugueth Urbina trade to Florida, at least for now � is Ugueth Urbina. UUU will be a setup man for the time being to current closer Braden Looper (2.28 ERA/17 saves). That is subject to change so don�t jettison Urbina yet. Meanwhile, Francisco Cordero becomes the Texas closer, although the re-habbing Jeff Zimmerman could eventually become an option.

Finally, give a call to Ken Griffey Jr. for his �one-a-day� bombs, five in as many starts this past week. Feel free to toss in more than one hit in a game at any time.

The top pick-ups and drops for this week in CDM are about as big a shock as Gary Payton and Karl Malone joining the Lakers. Notice how things are very quiet on the reliever front�

1. Morgan Ensberg 3B-HOU (199) � OH MY!!!!!
2. Milton Bradley OF-CLE (93) � Pissed off about being snubbed for the All-Star team, and plans to �validate himself� in the second half.
3. Melvin Mora OF-BAL (88) � Dodgers have offered a center field along with a LHP prospect, O�s say it will take more than that. I think this deal is getting done.
4. Juan Pierre OF-FLA (74) � SB�s are the toughest commodity.
5. Dontrelle Willis SP-FLA (69) � Fish are becoming pretty popular.
6. Vernon Wells OF-TOR (47) � Did his part in the All-Star comeback.
7. Rocco Baldelli OF-TB (35) � Like Bradley, an easy salary-slot replacement for Patterson.
8. Barry Bonds OF-SF (34) � Seven bombs away from 650.
9. Jose Guillen OF-CIN (33) � Will soon be a regular on this list.
10. Preston Wilson OF-COL (28) � Suddenly up to 91 RBI, only six behind Delgado.

1. Corey Patterson OF-CHC (423) � Huge challenge in having to come up with something new to say about Corey for ten weeks.
2. Josh Phelps 1B-TOR (54) � A professional athlete from Anchorage was honored this week - unfortunately it was Scott Gomez.
3. Dave Roberts OF-LA (53) � Drop him for Rickey, no just kidding.
4. Vladimir Guerrero OF-MTL (39) � Seeing him sit out the rest of this year may not be bad � it would make him a bargain when the Expos play the entire home slate in San Juan next year.
5. Austin Kearns OF-CIN (37) � Barring injury, who would had thunk this in April???
6. Pat Burrell OF-PHI (35) � Didn�t know anyone still owned him.
7. Adam Dunn OF-CIN (31) � Another big red disappointment.
8. Joe Crede 3B-CWS (30) � Down to .225
9. Torii Hunter OF-MN (26) � That entire team is in a funk.
10. Junior Spivey 2B-AZ (24) � Now on a rehab assignment.

This week will be about as straight-forward as it gets, all teams play seven games with the exception of San Diego and St. Louis who play six. Besides SD and STL, everyone plays the ever-popular 2-2-3 format. Oakland plays the entire week on the road while San Francisco is at home � everybody else plays anywhere between two and five home games. Current two-start projections (considering they start Thursday) include Curt Schilling, Kevin Millwoon, Mike Mussina, Hideo Nomo, and Tim Hudson. Keep an eye out for Monday and Saturday, where offenses are liable to go beserk v. fourth and fifth starters.

I close with this weeks CDM Free Agent list�