Coming On Strong

It's not how you start, it's how you finish—that's the mantra hitters chant when they find themselves in a slump early in the season. No one is finishing with more of a flourish than Rangers outfielder Frank Catalanotto, whose .395 batting average since the All-Star break through Sunday was by far the highest in the majors. ( Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners, with a .357 average, was next best.) For the season Catalanotto, who batted .297 before the break, was hitting .344, placing him second in the American League batting race (behind Suzuki, who was hitting .349). Here are the five hitters with the biggest jumps between their first-and second-half averages among qualifiers for the batting title.

[This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine or PDF.]