After years of futility and sub-.500 finishes, it's possible the Hiroshima Carp, still in first place despite Sunday's 9-5 loss to the Chunichi Dragons, are actually for real this season.

Much the same can be said about outfielder Brad Eldred, the man helping to power the team's offensive resurgence early this year.

Eldred is swinging the bat as well as anyone in Japan right now. He has the highest batting average in the Central League at .370 and his 39 RBIs and 1.124 on-base plus slugging percentage are both tops in NPB. Eldred is also tied for the second-most home runs in Japanese baseball with 12 and has an isolated power rating of .333. To put it in more simple terms, Eldred is raking.