Thoughts on the Derby

I used to love the home run derby. In fact, when I was in my early teens I think I enjoyed the derby more than the All-Star Game itself. Over the years, my attitude has changed -- and more and more often as the years have gone by I've found myself watching the first batter or two, getting bored, and finding something else to watch. Part of it is just the interminable length of the thing, which seems to drag out longer and longer every year. Part of it is that there usually isn't much of a story to the event -- it's just a bunch of guys trying to smash balls out of the yard.

This year was different, for two reasons. First, Josh Hamilton's story is unbelievably compelling. As much as it has been covered, it could have become stale and annoying -- but it hasn't. There always seems to be a new wrinkle or another angle to cover, and ESPN has done a pretty good job of giving us good information. At times during the derby, it felt like things might be a bit overplayed, but that was largely just because of the Herculean feat Hamilton performed in the First Round. "The Story" combined with "The Feat" (28 homers in round 1) made for great entertainment.

Second, Justin Morneau's presence in the event, culminating in what I consider a somewhat shocking win, also gave me a reason to keep watching. For fans outside of Minnesota, I imagine that this was pretty meaningless. For a Twins fan, however, it was surprisingly gratifying. I say "surprisingly" because I really don't care about the derby -- but I sure did enjoy seeing Morneau get the win.

After the event, most of the coverage went to Josh Hamilton's first round, and I'm fine with that. After all, nothing Morneau did tonight was amazing, while Hamilton's first round most definitely was. In the end, though, Morneau gets the trophy and goes down in the history books as the champ. I'm sure he'll take it.

If tomorrow's All-Star Game is on par with what we saw tonight, it'll be quite the game. I hope each of the Twins gets some work, and I'll be rooting for a Morneau homer to put him in the running for the MVP award. Finally, while I almost never root for a Yankee, I'm actually hoping for an AL lead going into the top of the 9th so that we can see Mariano Rivera get in the game. Tomorrow should be a blast!

First Two Months

No notes tonight (although congrats to the Twins on a nice win) -- I wanted to finally get my thoughts on award winners and All-Stars out tonight. There's nothing particularly groundbreaking here in the way of analysis, but if you haven't been following things closely you might be surprised at just who has good numbers so far this season. Without further ado (and a few days late), here are my thoughts on the first two months of the season:

Award Winners

It's obviously extremely early, and when the end of the season rolls around the names that I've listed below almost certainly won't be at the top of the respective awards voting. Nonetheless, it's kind of fun to just take a look at where we'd be if the season ended today.

AL CY Young

The best numbers in the AL so far this year have mostly been put up by some unexpected names. For me, I can't get past the guy who leads the league in ERA -- Cliff Lee of the Indians. The ERA title and Cy Young don't necessarily need to go to the same guy, but when you see that a guy has a 1.88 ERA (entering today's games), a 0.96 WHIP, an 8-1 record, and a 57-10 K-BB ratio, it's pretty impressive. The next best ERA belongs Daisuke Matsuzaka at 2.53, which is a pretty significant difference. If Matsuzaka was significantly better somewhere, I could justify favoring him over Lee for this -- but he doesn't. Matsuzaka doesn't have a loss, so I guess he's better there -- but he has a higher WHIP to go with that higher ERA, more walks, fewer strikeouts, and thanks to his injury, fewer innings pitched. There's simply no justification for putting him ahead of Lee.

NL Cy Young

Like the AL, the NL is filled with some unexpected names at the top of the Cy Young charts. Somewhat surprisingly, Johan Santana isn't yet quite on that list -- his 3.20 ERA is 10th in the league, and he's not at the top of any of the other major categories. He's been very good (and very important to the Mets), but he isn't in the running for the Cy Young (once again, I say "yet!").

So who is on the list? It's hard to ignore the Reds' Edinson Volquez, who has a stunning 1.46 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 68.0 innings, a 7-2 record, and an 83-36 K-BB ratio. Fellow youngster Tim Lincecum of the Giants is the next closest in ERA at 2.23, with a 1.27 WHIP, 78-32 K-BB ratio, and 76.2 innings under his belt. Usual suspects Carlos Zambrano (Cubs) and Brandon Webb (D-Backs) are right behind Lincecum, and Webb's 10 wins are impressive. Still, how do you get past Volquez's raw stats? At this point, he has to get the nod.

AL MVP

I'm not even going to bother mentioning more than one name here -- this award belongs to Josh Hamilton of the Rangers, who has a .329 batting average, 1.005 OPS, 17 homers, 67 RBI's, and just 37 K's in 243 AB's. I don't have a clue what to say to those numbers -- they're just stunning. If he keeps this up for long, he'll have such a lead by the end of June that no one will even have a chance to catch him.

NL MVP

Talk about a fun race! The winner right now would have to be the Astros' Lance Berkman, who has a .382 average, 1.213 OPS (ridiculous!), 17 homers, 48 RBI's, 33 K's in 212 AB's, and 10 steals for good measure. His closest competition is Atlanta's Chipper Jones, who is hitting a remarkable .409 with a 1.141 OPS, 13 HR's, and 38 RBI's. Perennial contender Albert Pujols of the Cardinals is also in the mix with a .362 average, 1.122 OPS, 14 homers and 39 RBI's. Finally, how could I not mention the Phillie's Chase Utley, with his .325 average, 1.092 OPS, 21 homers, and 53 RBI's. Really, this should be great to watch -- these are four great players who actually have a chance to keep their numbers high (although I have to imagine they're going to fall off a bit before the end of the season . . . don't they?).

AL Rookie of the Year

Based on qualified rookies, at this point there are a couple of pitchers and a couple of position players with a shot. Twins pitcher Nick Blackburn is at least in the running, with a 3.32 ERA and 1.38 WHIP to go along with a 41-14 K-BB ratio and a 4-3 record in 76.0 innings. Oakland's Greg Smith has a 3.56 ERA and 1.20 WHIP to go with a 53-24 K-BB ratio and a 3-4 record. I actually like Smith's numbers a bit more than Blackburn's for this slot.

However, both pitchers probably fall behind outfielders David Murphy (Texas) and Jacoby Ellsbury (Boston) in the pecking order. Murphy has a .292 average and .807 OPS to go with 7 homers and 39 RBI's, while Ellsbury has a .284 average and .792 OPS with 28 steals in 31 attempts. Ellsbury's steals numbers are impressive, and since his average and OPS are close to Murphy's, I actually am inclined to give the nod to Ellsbury for now. Of course, there's a significant expectation that Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria will take it from them both by the end of the year -- for now, however, I find it hard to believe that a guy who is hitting .237 belongs at the top of the list.

NL Rookie of the Year

I like the Atlanta's Jair Jurrjens, who has a 3.45 ERA and 1.38 WHIP with a 5-3 record and 51-30 K-BB ratio, but those numbers probably aren't good enough to get him above two Chicago Cubs position players. Outfielder Kosuke Fukudome has a .305 average and .843 OPS, proving clearly that he has had no trouble transitioning to the big leagues. Meanwhile, catcher Geovany Sato has a .293 average and .944 OPS with 10 homers and 39 RBI's. I also can't leave this category without mentioning Blake DeWitt of the Dodgers, who has a .293 average and .815 OPS with 5 homers and 29 RBI's. Give me Sato for now -- but watch out for Jay Bruce of the Reds, whose early numbers are just silly. He has plenty of time to get into this conversation.

AL Manager of the Year

This has to be Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon, doesn't it? The Rays no longer have the best record in the league, but you have to think that Red Sox manager Terry Francona and Angels manager Mike Scioscia have easier jobs than Maddon does, trying to keep all that young talent on the right track. I'd like to give an honorable mention to Ron Gardenhire for keeping the Twins in contention despite a number of issues we are all familiar with. The same could be said for Ozzie Guillen, but considering the things that come out of his mouth I'm inclined to think the White Sox are winning in spite of, not because of, him. I just don't think you can give this to anyone other than Maddon.

NL Manager of the Year

I like Chicago's Lou Piniella here, but until a couple of days ago I would probably have gone with Florida's Fredi Gonzalez. I don't have as good a grasp of this race as the AL race, but if I had a vote I'd be comfortable going with Sweet Lou.

Gold Gloves

Yeah, right . . . it's hard enough to project these at the end of the year, what with the relatively meaningless defensive statistics we have. I'm not going to make the effort here.


All-Star Selections

When it gets closer to All-Star break, I'll actually give my picks for the whole team, along with detailed explanations. For now, I'm just going to give you the players I'd pick to be starters. Sadly, these picks have very little to do with who the fans will be voting in, more than likely!

American League
Starter - Cliff Lee (CLE)
Closer - Mariano Rivera (NYY)
C - Joe Mauer (MIN)
1B - Justin Morneau (MIN)
2B - Ian Kinsler (TEX)
3B - Alex Rodriguez (NYY)
SS - Michael Young (TEX)
OF - Josh Hamilton (TEX)
OF - Carlos Quentin (CHW)
OF - Manny Ramirez (BOS)

National League
Starter - Edinson Volquez (CIN)
Closer - Billy Wagner (NYM)
C - Bengie Molina (SFG)
1B - Lance Berkman (HOU)
2B - Chase Utley (PHI)
3B - Chipper Jones (ATL)
SS - Miguel Tejada (HOU)
OF - Ryan Ludwick (STL)
OF - Nate McLouth (PIT)
OF - Aaron Rowand (SFG)

All-Star Game Thoughts

First, let me say that overall I enjoyed watching tonight's All-Star game quite a bit. The implosion of J.J. Putz and Francisco Rodriguez (admittedly, Rodriguez's "implosion" was pretty minor) nearly resulted in an impressive NL comeback -- but alas, the AL picked up a 10th straight victory and once again earned home field advantage in the World Series. Since I didn't get any thoughts up before the game actually happened, I'm not going to give as detailed of a run-down as I normally would have (it's a little bit late for that). However, I did want to get my thoughts on the blog, so here goes nothing:

American League

Catcher
Victor Martinez (CLE) should have been the starter in this game (.324/.936/16 HR/68 RBI/44 R), and Jorge Posada (NYY) belonged on the team as well (.326/.904/9 HR/48 RBI/46 R). Ivan Rodriguez (DET) actually won the right to be on the team by winning the fan vote, and I can't argue with his inclusion -- he beats out Kenji Johjima (SEA) because he has 46 RBI's to Johjima's 32, and 35 R's to Johjima's 28. Johjima has a slightly higher BA and a moderately higher OPS -- but the bottom line is run production, and Rodriguez has the advantage. He belonged on the team, but not in the starting lineup. Bottom line: Good choices for the AL behind the plate.

First Base
There are just two guys to talk about here, with David Ortiz (BOS) winning the fan vote and Justin Morneau (MIN) getting on through the player's ballot. I don't particularly like the idea of voting for a DH at a position that he doesn't really play, but that's the system so I'm not going to complain about it too much. However, let me say that this was not the year that Ortiz deserved to get a spot on the team. His numbers (.314/.990/14 HR/52 RBI/55 R) are fine, but Gary Sheffield (DET) didn't make the team despite overall better numbers (.303 BA and .970 OPS are lower, but 21 HR, 58 RBI, and especially 78 R are all higher, and Sheffield has also stolen 12 bases this year while striking out 24 fewer times than Ortiz). And, honestly, if Ortiz is a first baseman, then Sheffield is a first baseman. Jim Leyland also should have found a way to add another 1B to the team, because several other players -- Kevin Youkilis (BOS) and Carlos Pena (TBD) especially -- had at least colorable claims to a spot on the team. Bottom Line: The wrong DH made the squad thanks to fan voting, and Jim Leyland blew a chance to take another good hitter to San Fran.

Second Base
Statistically, Placido Polanco (DET) and Brian Roberts (BAL) are having the best season's amongst the AL second-sackers easily. There's really not much to analyze here -- only three second basemen in the AL have an OPS over .800 -- and Polanco (.815) and Roberts (.848) are two of them. The other is Dustin Pedroia (BOS), who actually has the highest OPS at .850. Nevertheless, Pedroia has about 90 fewer AB's than Polanco and 103 fewer than Roberts -- and he's also driven in fewer runs and scored way fewer -- 28 fewer than Polanco, and 22 fewer than Roberts -- so I don't think he's that strong of a candidate. Bottom Line: Good choices for the squad.

Third Base
Alex Rodriguez (NYY) dominated the fan vote -- and with a .317 average, 1.078 OPS, 30 HR's, a stunning 86 RBI's, and an equally ridiculous 79 R's scored (for a diminished Yankee team, remember), he's an absolutely obvious choice. Mike Lowell (BOS) is second amongst AL third basemen in average (.300), OPS (.869), HR's (14), and RBI (63) -- although his 39 runs rank just 7th. Still, it's clear that he's been the second best in the AL this season, and he deserves his place on the team. Adrian Beltre (SEA) and Casey Blake (CLE) get honorable mentions, but really don't come close. Bottom Line: Good choices all around.

Shortstop
Derek Jeter (NYY) won the fan vote, and he deserved to be on the team -- but as a backup. His .336 BA, .871 OPS, 44 RBI, and 57 R are solid, but overall they don't quite measure up to Carlos Guillen (DET), who has a .328 BA, .968 OPS, 67 RBI, and 51 R. It's the OPS and RBI categories that particularly get to me -- and the fact that Guillen plays for a better team (generally, I think with close decisions, the better team gets the edge). Here, though, I don't think you even have to go that far -- Guillen just has better numbers overall. At least he rightfully has a place on the team. Michael Young (TEX), unfortunately, did not deserve his spot. He ranks 6th in BA against shortstops, 7th in OPS, 5th in runs, and T-4th in RBI's. There had to be a better option available for the Rangers, right? Well . . . maybe not. Kenny Lofton (.301/.817/20 RBI/53 R) and Sammy Sosa (.245/.747/14 HR/63 RBI/35 R) are probably the other two legit options -- none of the pitchers are even remotely close -- and really, does a guy with just 20 RBI's or with just a .245 BA belong in the game? As much as I wouldn't have put in Michael Young normally, the every team is represented rule pretty much required his inclusion, so I have to agree. Bottom Line: Grudging acceptance of the choices.

Outfielders
Vladimir Guerrero (LAA), Magglio Ordonez (DET), and Ichiro Suzuki (SEA) -- a.k.a. Mr. All-Star MVP -- won the fan balloting, and all were exceptional choices. Ordonez has a stunning .367 BA and 1.050 OPS to go along with 70 Runs and 70 RBI's. Obvious, obvious choice. Suzuki has a .359 average, .870 OPS, 39 RBI's and 61 runs -- and 23 stolen bases -- and also clearly deserved his place. Guerrero was third in BA (.325), second in OPS (.962), first in RBI's (75), and has a reasonable, if somewhat low, number of runs scored (46). I agree with all of these picks. The backups all have something going for them as well -- Torii Hunter (MIN) has a .301 BA, but most importantly has a .900 OPS (third highest amongst AL OF's), 69 RBI and 55 Runs. Carl Crawford (TBD) is a D-Ray with good numbers (.285/.781/51 RBI/48 R/23 SB). Alex Rios (TOR) has a solid OPS, and high productivity (R+RBI) -- .870 and 115, respectively. Grady Sizemore (CLE) has scored more runs than anyone else in the AL and leads outfielders in SB's -- all while putting up solid numbers elsewhere (.280/.864/15 HR/46 RBI/73 R/24 SB). That leaves Manny Ramirez (BOS), and here I have to disagree with the pick. Ramirez has put up a .284/.851/11/45/45 -- but Curtis Granderson (DET) beats him clearly -- .283/.884/12/43/62. He's also hit 15 (!) triples and stolen 9 bases. His 82 K's are remarkably high, but Sizemore has 91 -- so that category certainly shouldn't have disqualified him (he's producing, after all). Granderson for Ramirez would have been a good, and smart switch. Bottom Line: 7 out of 8 isn't bad, but Manny should have stayed home this year in favor of Granderson.

Pitchers
Dan Haren (OAK) was the clear favorite to start this game, with an ERA nearly a half point higher than everyone else (2.30), 101 K's and just 32 walks, and a solid 10-3 record. Johan Santana (MIN) -- 2.75/125-30/10-6 -- also was clearly deserving, as was John Lackey (LAA) -- 2.91/98-32/11-5. I also can't complain with Gil Meche (KCR) -- the only Royal who belonged, and whose 3.54/88-36/5-6 (sorry about the record, big guy) should have earned him consideration even absent the every-team-gets-a-player rule (although they wouldn't have been enough to get him -- notice I just said he deserved "consideration"). C.C. Sabathia (CLE) has a fairly high ERA for an All-Star -- 3.58 -- but his 119-18 K-BB ratio is phenomenal, and his 12-3 record is great (record in and of itself doesn't mean a lot, but it's part of a nice, holistic approach). Justin Verlander (DET) has a low ERA and good numbers elsewhere (3.14/97-39/10-3), so he belongs. That leaves just Josh Beckett (BOS), who's numbers (3.44/92-21/12-2) are good enough that he, too, belongs on the team. With apologies to Jeremy Guthrie (BAL) (2.74/72-18/4-2), Chad Gaudin (OAK) (2.88/68-48/8-3), and Mark Buehrle (CHW) (3.03/98-32/11-5), everyone else belonged, and there just wasn't enough room.

As for the relievers, J.J. Putz (SEA) was an easy choice with his 0.88 ERA and 24 saves (and silly 44-7 K-BB ratio), and Francisco Rodriguez (LAA) has put together a good enough season to get on as well (2.33/24 saves/53-16). Jonathan Papelbon's (BOS) sub-2.00 ERA (1.93), 20 saves, and 46-10 K-BB -- along with his membership on the best team in baseball -- made him a must-take. Bobby Jenks (CHW) does not deserve to be on the team based on the merits -- 3.28 ERA/23 saves/33-12 K-BB -- and probably should have lost this spot to Mark Buehrle, who has better numbers. I guess Jim Leyland thought yet another closer was essential. The fans also got it right by voting in Hideki Okajima (BOS) with his 0.83 ERA and 37-12 K-BB ratio. Bottom Line: Bobby Jenks was the only mistake, with Mark Buehrle deserving to get the White Sox's reserved spot.


National League

Catchers
Russell Martin (LAD) was an easy and deserving choice to start for the NL with his .306 BA, .865 OPS, 11 HR, 60 RBI, and 51 R -- not to mention his 16 steals (for a catcher!). He leads the league amongst catchers in each of those categories, so this is obvious. Far less deserving was backup Brian McCann (ATL), who clearly made it on by reputation alone, since he's hitting just .262/.752 this year. Johnny Estrada (MIL) has better numbers (.293/.762/34 RBI/31 R) -- although McCann has 15 more RBI's, to be fair -- so probably should have gotten the nod. I guess I just think that .262 is skirting a little too low for an All-Star when there are guys with higher averages available. Bottom Line: McCann was not an All-Star in the first half this year, and should not have been on the team.

First Base
The NL's most hog-wild position, Tony LaRussa ended up with 4 first basemen on his team. Prince Fielder (MIL) won the fan vote, and it's easy to see why -- his .284 average and .996 OPS were coupled with 29 HR's, 70 RBI's, and 62 R's -- he leads each of those categories except batting average amongst NL first basemen, and deserved the start. Dmitri Young (WAS) and Derek Lee (CHC) lead NL first basemen in batting average (.339 and .330, respectively) , and both have reasonable OPS's (.902 and .890) -- although in the NL, those are actually not great numbers. Still, the batting averages alone, coupled with the team issue (for Young), make them solid choices. Albert Pujols (STL) also deserved his spot, because his numbers were simply superior to those of his nearest competitors, Todd Helton (COL) and Ryan Howard (PHI). Somehow, 4 first basemen is starting to make sense to me, considering the numbers these guys put up this year. Bottom Line: Insanely, Tony got these picks right.

Second Base
Chase Utley (PHI) won the fan vote, and rightfully so -- his numbers are arguably MVP worthy through the first half (.325/.972/15 HR/68 RBI/64 R). Orlando Hudson (ARI) and Freddy Sanchez (PIT) also made it onto the team, and while Hudson is a solid choice with his .296/.834/47/40, Sanchez is not (.296/.708/32/33). These being the Pirates, however, there really was no other choice -- no, not even Jason Bay, who is hitting just .254 this year. While Kelly Johnson (ATL) was a more deserving choice (.287/.852/42/55), he wasn't so good that I can call him a legitimate stub. Bottom Line: I grudgingly accept the choices as the right ones.

Third Base
David Wright (NYM) won the voting, but shouldn't have -- his .292/.879/16/51/49 numbers are nice, but they don't compare to any number of his peers. For one thing, the other third baseman to make the team was Miguel Cabrera (FLA), and he put up .324/.969/18/61/52 -- an improvement in every category, and by quite a bit in several of them. Chipper Jones (ATL) missed time this year, but has still put up numbers that were deserving of a bid (.329/1.011/15/41/48). Aramis Ramirez (CHC) also has a solid case at .312/.913/15/51/36. Bottom Line: Wrong starter, and with just 2 spots, Wright should not have made the cut.

Shortstop
Jose Reyes (NYM) won the voting, and I can't bring myself to disagree. He has a .307 average, an .825 OPS out of the leadoff spot, and an 80's-like 46 SB's this season. J.J. Hardy (MIL) is more puzzling -- his .280/.833/18/54/48 aren't bad, by any means -- but what about Hanley Ramirez (FLA) and his .331/.926/14/35/70 with 27 SB's? Or Jimmy Rollins (PHI) and his .286/.847/16/53/71? Bottom Line: Another poor decision in the NL, this time by the players and not the fans. Ramirez and Rollins should have both made the team at Hardy's expense (and probably at the expense of one of the 3000 closers Tony LaRussa selected).

Outfielders
Here's where things went horribly off the rails in the NL. Carlos Beltran (NYM), Barry Bonds (SFG), and Ken Griffey, Jr. (CIN) won the fan vote in the NL, and only one of them even has a legit claim. Well, OK, maybe two. Let's start with the easy one, though -- Carlos Beltran was not an All-Star this year. Not even close, as a matter of fact. For one thing, his .264 battinga verage and .817 OPS are drowned out by a host of other players numbers (he's 23rd in BA, for example). This was entirely a team-based vote, and was probably the worst mistake by the fans all year (unless you count David Ortiz winning the AL 1B vote). Griffey -- I can dig it. He's hitting .286, which is ok -- and his .958 OPS puts him third in that category amongst NL outfielders. He also leads the pack in homeruns with 23, and has solid production numbers with 59 RBI and 49 Runs. Bonds -- I'm ambivalent, but his sick 1.101 OPS and 91 walks are enough to convince me that he belongs in the starting lineup.

Amongst the backups, Matt Holliday (COL) was an obvious choice with his .341/.964/69 RBI/56 R numbers. Alfonso Soriano (CHC) was more of a stretch, however, at .309/.884/33/60. The 60 runs probably save him here, and his OPS isn't bad -- but these numbers just don't excite me much. Carlos Lee (HOU) gets the nod because he's driven in 73 runs while keeping the batting average and OPS reasonably high (.297/.869) and scoring a solid number of runs (48). That leaves Aaron Rowand (PHI), the man I least expected to see on this list. He does have solid numbers, though, with a .310/.863/43/52. Is that really better than Brad Hawpe (COL), though? I don't think so -- Hawpe is hitting .310/.949/60/44 -- clearly an improvement. Bottom Line: Beltran doesn't even belong on the team, let alone in the starting lineup -- and Aaron Rowan should have been left off to make room for Brad Hawpe.

Pitchers
Jake Peavy (SDP) was a deserving All-Star starter, with a 2.19 ERA/125-34 K-BB/9-3 record -- but he arguably wasn't even the best pitcher on his team -- Chris Young (SDP) put up unbelievably solid numbers, with a 2.00 ERA, 99-36 K-BB, and 8-3 record. Young nonetheless had to win the fan vote to make it on as the last player selected -- an egregious offense that never should have happened. He was an All-Star all the way. Brad Penny (LAD) (2.39/82-34/10-1) was also clearly All-Star worthy. Beyond that, things get harder to figure. John Smoltz (ATL) deserved his bid (3.07/75-35/9-5), but unfortunately couldn't play. Brandon Webb (ARI) had to wait for an injury to get in despite solid numbers (3.37/112-47/8-6), and the same is true for Roy Oswalt (HOU), although he was closer to the line (3.53/94-44/8-5). Then there was Ben Sheets (MIL), a solid choice against whom I can't argue too loudly (3.41/87-25/10-4). Unfortunately, these selections meant that very deserving candidates like John Maine (NYM), Ian Snell (PIT), Tom Gorzelanny (PIT), and Oliver Perez (NYM), amongst others, were left off of the list.

The sheer number of closers selected was probably the most bizarre thing, however. Tony LaRussa went with six closers for reasons that are hard to fathom. Let's start with the good -- Takashi Saito (LAD) has a 1.47 ERA, a sick 47-4 K-BB, and 23 saves. Yep, that's an All-Star. Trevor Hoffman (SDP) -- 1.91 ERA, 20-6 K-BB, 25 saves -- is weak in the K department but is still getting it done -- All-Star. Billy Wagner (NYM) also passes the smell test with a 1.64 ERA, 51-10 K-BB, and 17 saves. But why not stop there? The team didn't need the good but not great Francisco Cordero (MIL) and his 2.86/49-12/27 numbers or Jose Valverde (ARI) and his 2.83/38-14/26. And the club certainly didn't need Brian Fuentes (COL) and his 4.06/31-11/20. Fuentes ended up having to bow out due to injury, but what were the players thinking in the first place? Bottom Line: Way too many closers made this roster at the expense of some very deserving starting pitchers. There may be a time when 6 closers are warranted -- but this was not that time.

AL All-Star Thoughts

It's that time of year again -- we're about a month away from the Midsummer Classic, and it's time to start thinking about who is deserving of the title of All-Star. As a part of this process, I'm going to spend some time talking about who is going to get into the game, who should get into the game, and who is likely to be snubbed.

First, a minor refresher on the rules. Each league starts off with 32 players on their respective roster. Of course, there are always injuries and other problems that prevent some guys from attending -- and when that happens, the non-participating player keeps the title of All-Star, but another player is selected to take the non-participant's place on the 32-man roster. Every team must have at least one All-Star, which can make for some awfully interesting decisions, and some awfully tough snubs.

The selection of players is rather convoluted. First, fans vote the starting position players, which takes up 8 of the roster spots. Players then vote for pitchers and one backup at each position, which fills up the majority of the rest of the roster. A mysterious collective of the 30 Manager's and the Commissioner's office then fill the roster up to 31 players, ensuring that every team is represented and that the roster is balanced. That leaves one spot in each league for the "Final Vote," which again belongs to the fans. Got that? Good.

So, without further ado, here's my AL All-Star team, as of June 13 (all stats current through Monday night):

First, you have to begin with the fan vote. At this point, the AL position starters would be as follows, with the second-place vote getters in brackets:

C - Ivan Rodriguez - DET (679,403) [Jorge Posada - NYY (567,153)]
1B - David Ortiz - BOS (1,055,260) [Justin Morneau - MIN (519,432)]
2B - Placido Polanco - DET (572,238) [Robinson Cano - NYY (520,506)]
3B - Alex Rodriguez - NYY (1,404,001) [Mike Lowell - BOS (528,895)]
SS - Derek Jeter - NYY (1,161,162) [Carlos Guillen - DET (409,813)]
OF - Vladimir Guerrero - LAA (1,118,951)
OF - Manny Ramirez - BOS (823,269)
OF - Ichiro Suzuki - SEA (757,275) [Magglio Ordonez (644,183)]

Normally, I would take the time to offer some criticism of these choices (positive AND negative) -- but since I'm telling who what my roster would be, I'm just going to accept the results of the fan voting as is. When I discuss who my backups would be, there will some discussion of players who I think should have been at the top of the fan voting, however.

Now, onto my reserves -- by position:

Catchers
My ideal All-Star roster would include three catchers, so I need two more guys to join Ivan Rodriguez. One of the choices is an absolute no-brainer -- Jorge Posada (NYY) is having a brilliant year, with a .358 batting average and .980 OPS to go along with 7 homers and 40 RBI's. If ever there was a deserving All-Star, he is it. There are several deserving guys for the third spot behind the plate. First, as much as I love Joe Mauer (MIN), I have to disqualify him because he's missed a month of the season -- and there are other very good catchers who have played the whole year. The choice really comes down to Kenji Johjima of the Mariners (.330/.878/7/27) and Victor Martinez of the Indians (.325/.931/12/54). Looking at those numbers, there's really no choice -- Kenji Johjima would be deserving in most years, but Victor Martinez is having a great year for a 1st place team, and so gets the call.

First Base
With David Ortiz already occupying the starting slot, there's room for two more (real) first basemen on the roster. There aren't a lot of guys putting up huge numbers at 1B this year, with former All-Stars like Paul Konerko (CHW) (.244/.757) and Richie Sexson (SEA) (.200/.693) struggling mightily. It's fairly obvious, though, that Kevin Youkilis (BOS) is deserving of a spot on the team, what with his .336 batting average and .947 OPS, along with 8 homers and 32 RBI's. That would mean, of course, that he'd be backing up a teammate -- a very rare situation in an All-Star game. It makes too much sense not to happen here, though. The second spot is a bit tougher -- Casey Kotchman (.323/.944/7/32) is having a great season for the Angels, Carlos Pena (.306/1.029/13/33) is playing great for the D0-Rays, and Mark Teixeira (.302/.959/12/41) has solid numbers for the Rangers. Who gets the call, then, if these guys don't? Considering the rest of my roster, the answer has to be the Twins own Justin Morneau, who leads all AL first basemen with 17 HR's and 46 RBI's. His .273 average and .888 are lower than the other guys on this list, but he's still getting the job done (based on run production -- 40 runs scored, 46 driven in -- no one else is anywhere near that), so he gets the call.

Second Base
Placido Polanco deserves to win this spot, so kudos to the fans for recognizing that a guy with a .348/.830 should be in the Classic. More interesting is who comes next. There are actually a number of second basement with excellent arguments for deserving a spot. One of them is the Twins own Luis Castillo, who has a .330 average. However, his OPS is only .740, and he's scored fewer runs than the other major competitors, so it's hard to justify including him. If he makes it in, it will be on the strength of his average and the fact that he is now the Major League record-holder for errorless games at 2B. There are other, better candidates, however -- and Robinson Cano (NYY), in second-place in the voting, is not amongst them (he's hitting just .269, with 28 runs). For one, Boston's Dustin Pedroia is hitting .316/.840 -- but that's not quite good enough. Instead, I would take Tampa's B.J. Upton, who has great numbers this year (.320/.941/9/31), and Baltimore's Brian Roberts, who also is having a very solid season (.324/.839/2/17).

Third Base
Alex Rodriguez absolutely deserves to be leading this category, because he's having a great year. Last year, the AL took just one reserve third baseman -- and that might be a viable option again this year, with some poor performances throughout the league. However, I would still go with two backups, because I think it can be justified. Numerous players deserve at least consideration, starting with Tampa's Akinori Iwamura, who is hitting .341/.925 -- but his long injury has left him with just 88 AB's this year, so I have to skip him. Also meriting serious attention are Texas' Hank Blalock (.285/.828/5/16) -- but the RBI numbers are problematic -- and Cleveland's Casey Blake (.283/.868/9/34). However, I think Boston's Mike Lowell (.312/.921/11/47) is an absolute shoo-in for a spot on the roster. He should be joined by Toronto's Troy Glaus (.292/.946/10/28), who has also been limited by injury this year (to just 144 AB's), but who fills a spot for the Blue Jays and overall deserves to be in the game.

Shortstop
Derek Jeter, as always, is a worthy pick to start the game (.329/.858/4/31). His primary backup, without question, should be the Angels Orlando Cabrera, who has pumped out a .335/.831/3/35 that has been at least the equal of Jeter's season. A number of players could legitimately make the roster as a third shortstop, including Tampa's Brendan Harris (yes, really!) who has a .316 average and .835 OPS with 6 homers and 28 RBI's. Also on the short list would be Carlos Guillen (DET) (.305/.903/8/41), Miguel Tejada (BAL) (.302/.769/6/33), and Jhonny Peralta (CLE) (.288/.864/12/37). However, my pick for the final spot would actually belong to the slightly under-achieving Michael Young (TEX) (.284/.744/4/36), who has at least scored a lot and driven in a lot of runs despite having a low OPS. More importantly -- he plays for the Rangers, who need a representative. Since none of the guys that I would snub are having amazing seasons, I feel that taking Young here can be justified.

Outfield
With Manny Ramirez, Vlad Guerrero, and Ichiro already on the roster, I would take three more outfielders. One of them is absolutely obvious: Magglio Ordonez (DET) is easily having the best season of his career, with a .367 batting average and ridiculous 1.108 OPS with 13 homers and 56 RBI. It doesn't hurt that he's on a first place team, and his manager will be in charge of things on game day. He'll be there, without question. That leaves two slots, and there are a number of solid candidates -- including Angels rookie phenom Reggie Willits (.311/.769 in 161 AB's) and Tampa's Carl Crawford (.304/.863/6/38). However, I think the last two spots have to go to the Twins Torii Hunter (.308/.908/13/49) and Cleveland's Grady Sizemore (.289/.889/11/32/54 runs/18 steals). Sizemore's average is lower than some of the other serious candidates, but his overall production is so high, and he's on such a good team, that he has to make it in. Torii, meanwhile, is having a great year, tying for 2nd amongst AL Outfielders in homeruns and alone in third for RBI's. With a solid average, that's enough for me.

Starting Pitchers
This spot includes the single biggest question -- who would I hand the ball to at the beginning of the game? First, it should be known that I would take just 10 pitchers -- fewer than is usually the case. Of those, I would take 6 starters, 3 closers, and 1 other relief pitcher. First, it should be recognized that there are some truly brilliant performances out there on the mound in the AL, and a lot of guys deserve recognition. Those who I would take to the Classic include: Josh Beckett (BOS) (9-0/2.88/1.00 WHIP/67-16 K-BB/72 innings). It's hard to argue with a guy who has a sub-3.00 ERA and is undefeated on the season. Beckett could have even better numbers if he didn't have that darned blister. Next up: John Lackey (LAA) (9-4/2.60/1.19 WHIP/67-23 K-BB/86.2 innings), who has been the clear ace of the Angels staff. Also making my cut -- Justin Verlander (DET) (6-2/2.84/1.21 WHIP/66-29 K-BB/82.1 innings). The no-hitter against the Brewers is a nice-touch that puts him over the top and onto the All-Star team. Chad Gaudin (OAK) (6-1/2.43/1.33 WHIP/51-32 K-BB/77.2 innings) came close to not making the cut for a number of reasons, but in the end I can't look away from a sub-2.50 ERA, so he makes the team. I'd also include Jon Garland (CHW) (4-3/3.42/1.17 WHIP/33-26 K-BB), because his numbers aren't bad and the White Sox need to have a representative. That leaves one more starter spot to go, and it goes to the overall starter. There really can be no question here -- by far the most dominant pitcher in the AL this season has been Oakland's Dan Haren (7-2/1.58/0.86 WHIP/76-21 K-BB/97 innings). He just blows everyone else out of the water, and has to get the nod to start the game. Of course, this leaves off a number of deserving candidates: guys like Fausto Carmona (CLE) (7-1/2.88/1.26 WHIP/39-18 K-BB), James Shields (TB) (6-0/3.04/0.96 WHIP/83-18 K-BB/97.2 innings), C.C. Sabathia (CLE) (9-1/3.09/1.12 WHIP/89-15 K-BB/99 innings), and of course, Johan Santana (6-6/3.24/1.10 WHIP/96-23 K-BB/86 innings), any of whom could make the team. I just don't have room for them on my roster.

Relievers
This one is actually fairly easy for me. With three closer spots to give out, there are two guys who I think are shoo-ins, and one guy who I need to include to fulfill the "one-guy-per-team" requirement. The two deserving candidates are Francisco Rodriguez (LAA) (19 saves/2.36 ERA/37-11 K-BB) and J.J. Putz (SEA) (18 saves/1.23 ERA/31-5 K-BB), who simply can't not be selected. The third choice is Kansas City's Joakim Soria (10 saves/3.28 ERA/28-12 K-BB), who's having a very nice season. It's him or Gil Meche, who would also be a worthy choice. I'd rather take 3 closers than 7 starters, though, so I'll arbitrarily make the decision to go with Soria over Meche here. This leaves off a few guys who are having really nice seasons -- Jonathan Papelbon (BOS) (14 saves/2.01 ERA/32-10 K-BB), Joe Nathan (MIN) (14 saves/1.98 ERA/28-9 K-BB), and Al Reyes (15 saves/1.95 ERA/33-7 K-BB) most notable among them. That's just how it goes. Finally, I want to include a middle reliever on the team, and for me the best choice is Rafael Betancourt (CLE) (12 holds/1.32 ERA/25-2 K-BB ratio). Those numbers speak for themselves, so he gets the nod from me.

Final Vote
So, there's my roster. That's 31 players, if you counted, because remember -- one spot will be filled by the winner of the final vote contest. If I were the commish, and I were confronted with this roster, who would I include in that list? Well, the five man ballot I would put out would probably look like this:

RP - Jonathan Papelbon
SP - James Shields
1B - Casey Kotchman
SP - C.C. Sabathia
OF - Carl Crawford

And of the guys on that list, I'd have a hard time not going with C.C. Sabathia, even if it's painfully obvious that Jonathan Papbelbon would actually win if this were the ballot.