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With as many surprises as there have been this year, there are just as many disappointments. Every team and every player starts out the season with high hopes. This could be the year they win the pennant of have that breakthrough season. Sometimes it works out, but more often it doesn't. Here is my list of the biggest disappointments so far this season. Remember, I don't follow every team, so this is not meant to be comprehensive!

5. The New York Yankees
With the highest payroll in baseball (again), the Yankees were not expected to have much trouble repeating as division champs. They added Randy Johnson to their pitching staff, got Jason Giambi back in the lineup, and looked ready to put last year's collapse behind them. But things have not fallen into place as they had hoped. They are only one game above .500 and trail the Red Sox by 5.5 games.

4. Paul Konerko
Konerko's struggles at the plate have been somewhat magnified, instead of obscured, by the success of the White Sox. He is only batting .254, though he does have 18 homers and 52 RBI. These would be respectable numbers for lots of players, but more is expected from this usually hard-hitting first baseman. Konerko has turned it up a notch recently, and is hitting .333 in his last 7 games. Hopefully he can turn the corner here and just keep going.

3. Andy Pettite
Pettite is just 4-7 on the season, which is certainly not where he expects to be after 14 starts. It's true that the entire Houston Astros team is struggling this year, but for some reason, Pettite stands out for me. I think all of his years on the Yankees made me have unrealistic expectations for him. At any rate, Pettite obviously needs to turn things up a notch in the second half.

2. Kerry Wood and Mark Prior
These days it's no secret that the Cubs hang all of their hopes on their two young aces. So when Wood and Prior were sidelined by long-term injuries for the second consecutive season, you could almost hear the collective groan emanating from Chicago's North Side. The Cubs have had a hard time keeping the St. Louis Cardinals in sight during Wood and Prior's time on the disabled list. St. Louis is now 9.5 games ahead of the freefalling Cubs. The good news is that both Wood and Prior are slated to return within the next week.

1. The Seattle Mariners
OK, so maybe no one expected the Mariners to win their division in the first place. But I don't think anyone could envision the extent to which they would struggle in the first half of the season. Seattle's front office went out and spent big bucks to acquire free agents Richie Sexson and Adrian Beltre during the offseason. It was no secret that they needed offensive help. But both of those players have not produced as hoped. Sexson is batting a dismal .242 on the season, while Beltre, the $64 million dollar man, has only 5 home runs through 66 games.