Perennial batting champion Tony Gwynn of San Diego is right where he could be expected, leading the National League in hitting.
But Cincinnati Reds first baseman Hal Morris has joined the hunt.Gwynn, who has won four batting titles, is leading the NL with a .394 average. Montreal's Moises Alou is second at .350 and Morris has climbed into third at .345.
Morris barely missed a batting title on the last day of the 1991 season, his first full year in the major leagues. Morris needed to go 4-for-4 or 4-for-5 to beat out Atlanta's Terry Pendleton, who batted .319. Instead, Morris went 3-for-4 and finished the game in the on-deck circle with a .318 average.
Morris said he thinks playing in Denver gives Colorado Rockies hitters a big advantage.
"I think it's going to be very hard for anyone in the league to win the batting title that's not playing in Colorado," Morris said. "It's the altitude and the ballpark there.
"The ball travels a long way and the outfielders have to respect that, so they play deep and leave a lot of room in a big outfield. It's a hard thing to measure, but I think it's got to be worth 30 or 40 points."
The Rockies produced the batting champ last year, their first in the league, when Andres Galarraga batted .370.
Montreal manager Felipe Alou disagreed with Morris about the impact of Denver's mile-high altitude and his chances of winning a batting crown.
"To me, there's no question he is a contender," Alou said of Morris. "He has a good swing and a good idea how he is being pitched to. I managed in Denver in the minor leagues and I don't see it making that big of a difference."
Morris has batted better than .300 three times in his first four seasons. But the close call in 1991 taught him something about the relative importance of a batting title.
"At that point, I was thinking about it," Morris said. "You have to. It was a fun experience and it made the end of 1991 interesting when we weren't winning.
"But what I'm trying to do is get 200 hits. I'd like that because it means you're doing something every day, and that's the only thing you should concern yourself with."
Morris leads the NL with 70 hits and was tied with Gwynn and Los Angeles' Mike Piazza with 22 multi-hit games. In his last 15 starts, Morris has seven three-hit games and one four-hit game.