Geovany Soto is having nerly as good a rookie campaign as fellow Cub Kosuke Fukudome. Al Tielemans/SI

We all knew -- all of us who were paying the least bit of attention, anyway -- that Kosuke Fukudome was not going to be your run-of-the-mill rookie. With a .317 average, a .442 on-base percentage, several clutch hits and a cult following already among Cubs' fans, he hasn't disappointed. The same can be said for Reds' phenom Johnny Cueto, who opened eyes in the spring and has 29 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings. The kid can chuck it.

Those aren't the only rookies who are elbowing their way into important roles for their teams, though. Here are five more of the less-ballyhooed variety. (These just happen all to be from the National League. But look out for the new piranha, Matt Tolbert, of the Twins, his teammate, starter Nick Blackburn and center fielder Ryan Sweeney of the A's, too.)

Geovany Soto, C, Cubs -- A good eye (12 walks) and a better-than-average arm (he's caught four of 13 runners trying to steal) combined with an effective bat (.328, two homers, 13 RBIs) make this 11th-round pick (2001) someone the Cubs can bank on for awhile.

Joey Votto, 1B, Reds -- He's started the last six games at first base. Get used to it. The lefty-swinging Votto is hitting .298 with three homers and 10 RBIs overall. He still needs to find a little patience at the plate -- he hasn't drawn a walk in 17 games -- but he'll get there.

John Bowker, RF, Giants -- Not much is encouraging in San Francisco. Then there's Bowker, a 24-year-old who had two homers and seven RBIs in his first two games. He's currently hitting .364 with three homers and nine RBIs. Is he for real? We'll see.

Blake DeWitt, 3B, Dodgers -- The fill-in for just-back Nomar Garciaparra may be filling in a little longer than many expected. DeWitt, 22, has been steady in the field and smart at the plate (eight walks, six strikeouts, .373 OBP). Joe Torre currently favors him over the now-healthy Nomar.

Jair Jurrjens, RHP, Braves -- Very possibly the steadiest part of a rocky Atlanta rotation, the 22-year-old, who came over from Detroit in the Edgar Renteria trade, has allowed 23 hits in 25 1/3 innings, and struck out 21. He is 2-2 in four starts with a 3.20 ERA.

Player of the Week

David Wright, Mets

Know who had a hotter week than the Braves' Chipper Jones? OK, nobody had a hotter week. But in the interest of spreading things around a little, let's give some credit to the Mets' David Wright, who hit .522 in his team's six games, with a sick .633 on-base percentage and nine RBIs along the way. Wright was so good for the Mets -- who, by the way, went 5-1 -- that he overshadowed the re-emergence of shortstop Jose Reyes (.429, two homers, two RBIs, two stolen bases). Reyes scored seven runs in the six games, two more than he had in his first nine.

Team of the Week

Boston Red Sox

Here's something that should throw a scare into the rest of the American League. The Red Sox, even with David Ortiz being anything but Big Papi, hit .339 in going 6-1 last week. They crunched 28 extra-base hits, including eight homers. Scored an average of seven runs a game. True, their pitching needs a little help, but with hot players such as Manny Ramirez (a 1.476 OPS for the week), Kevin Youkilis (1.152), Dustin Pedroia (1.220) and Sean Casey (.909), they can afford to let Ortiz, J.D. Drew, Jason Varitek and Jacoby Ellsbury coast a little.

Lines of the Week

Conor Jackson, ARI, vs. SDP, April 18

4-for-5, 2 3B, 1 HR, 3 R, 4 RBIs

Andy Sonnanstine, TB, vs. CHW, April 19

9 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 Ks, 104 pitches, 77 strikes

Quote of the Week

"This is about the only place I've seen that. Shoot, they booed Santa Claus. They've taken this to a whole new level ..."

-- Mets closer Billy Wagner, on the fans of Philadelphia, some of whom cheered when Mets shortstop Jose Reyes was injured in an on-field collision Friday

High Five

Why Joe Torre plays Juan Pierre over Matt Kemp.

1.) The Dodgers need leaders and Pierre perennially leads the league (in outs made).

2.) Torre's old age making him a sucker for scrappy, hustling good guys who run out their many, many weak groundballs and pop-ups.

3.) Kemp's straight paths on fly balls wear down Dodger stadium grass more than Pierre's circuitous routes.

4.) You just don't bench your boss' high-priced acquisition.

5.) Kemp sounds like Hemp, and Torre doesn't want a mention in the next Mitchell report.

-- Sony Hudur, Culver City, Calif.

Send me a High Five on another subject. I'll give you credit.