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DENVERAs its turning out, Melky Cabrera didnt kill the Giants playoff aspirations.
But hes ruining what could be one heck of a thrilling finish to determine the NL batting champion.
Cabrera was hitting .346 when Major League Baseball slapped him with a 50-game suspension for testing positive for testosterone Aug. 15. Hes officially the leading hitter in the NLand the gap is widening.
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RELATED: NL Leaders -- Batting Average
Pittsburghs Andrew McCutchen is down to .338, and the gap continues to narrow between he and fellow top MVP candidate Buster Posey. The Giants brilliant catcher was 2 for 3 Tuesday night, raising his average to .332.
It couldve been a great finish between McCutchen and Posey, reminiscent of those duels that went to the final day of the regular season. (Will Clark and Tony Gwynn comes to mind.)But heres what makes the batting title so curious: Its the only race where its harder to
catch someone who is standing still.Cabrera isnt playing, so his average wont change. Its the same as playing every day and hitting .346 the rest of the way. As you might have heard, hes actually one plate appearance short of qualifying. But a player can have hitless at-bats added to fulfill the minimum, and with one more, Cabreras average would drop from .3464 to .3456.In other words, .346.Posey has a chance to catch McCutchen. But I took Poseys average plate appearances per game, multiplied it by 20 games remaining and determined how many hits hed need to boost his average above .3456.The short answer: Posey would need to hit .446 the rest of the way.Aint happening.Understand, the batting title isnt a trophy that can be rescinded or an honor that can be stripped. Its purely statistical, and Cabreras unmoving average gives him a greater advantage than any amount of testosterone cream he could smear on his personage.Too bad. It wouldve been one heck of a race.AP Images