National League
First Base
Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals
This one, I'm reluctant to call, because Pujols is a great example of a player who always wins, but doesn't always deserve to. I haven't voted for him the past few years, because I typically feel that there's a better option and he's overrated. This year, however, he has gotten off to the best start. With 26 home runs and a .324 batting average, it's hard to not call this guy an all-star. Being a Phillies fan, I'd really like to say Ryan Howard, and while he's starting to hit a lot more home runs recently and is having the best defensive season of his career, that .254 average just doesn't cut it. Adrian Gonzalez is another consideration, but he doesn't really drive in runs enough for the first base position.
Second Base
Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
Ever since he started with the Phillies, Utley has been a consistent contributor. He started out as a mere pinch hitter, who would keep coming in and getting that valuable late-game home run. Once moved to starter, he provided many more big hits and was a huge part of their success last year. So far this year, he leads second basemen in home runs (16) and is posting a solid .300 batting average. He also has an impressive 49 RBIs and 51 runs scored, showing that he will help light up the scoreboard time and time again. Uggla might have a good amount of homers himself, but his batting average isn't as impressive, so Utley easily gets the nod from me.
Shortstop
Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins
I'll be honest with you. A month ago, I had never heard of Hanley Ramirez. I was just banking on putting my vote down for Jimmy Rollins as I do every year. However, Rollins is batting a sour .211 (I've seen pitchers hit better than that!) and hasn't been hitting a lot out of the park (what happened to his 30 HRs of '07?). While I believe Rollins to be one of the most defensively solid players in the league, his offensive numbers this year leave a lot to be desired. He can easily be replaced with a shortstop with a decent enough glove and better numbers. Enter Ramirez, a .335 hitter with 11 HRs, 47 RBIs, and 46 runs.
Third Base
Ryan Zimmerman, Washington Nationals
This one is really hard to call. No third baseman really sticks out to me. Reynolds has a lot of pop (21 HRs), but his batting average is just decent (.269). Zimmerman may only have 13 homers so far, but his .295 average shows him to be a better hitter, more likely to keep an inning alive and contribute to a team's offensive success.
There isn't really a player at NL 3B who gets the vote every year, so no matter who wins, I probably won't complain. When there's no overly popular star to vote for, the votes typically go to someone who is actually deserving.
Catcher
Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves
As much as it pains a Phillies fan to vote for a Brave, McCann seems to be doing the best at Catcher this season. He has 8 HRs, and more imporantly, a .324 batting average. I read somewhere that Yadier Molina was leading early on, despite having very sour stats at the time. I can't say that I'm surprised to see the decent performers overlooked here. Catcher is a position that tends to be often ignored and people don't know a lot of names.
Outfielders
Raul Ibanez, Philadelphia Phillies
This is a no-brainer. Ibanez has been playing sensationally well for the Phils this year. Batting over .300 and hitting 22 HRs, he's been the premier outfielder in the National League. If you want more reason why Ibanez is an all-star, he leads NL outfielders in RBIs as well (59) and his posting a 1.027 OBPS. It isn't hard to tell that this guy is a great slugger. He's always hit well, but never this well before. As a Mariner, the HRs I listed would have likely been what he got to at the end of the season, not just the halfway point. His batting average rarely got over .300 either. You might think he's just taken a liking to hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park, but this is far from the case. He only has 9 HRs at home, compared to 13 on the road. He also bats better and knocks in more runs in away games.
Adam Dunn, Washington Nationals
This is a player with more popularity, but he is unquestionably playing well, as he typically does every year. The unique thing about Dunn is that he rarely ever hits into a sac fly. While sacrifices aren't necessarily bad, think for a moment what it might mean to never get one. With a runner on third and less than two outs, what are you doing if not flying out? Your options are strike out, shallow fly out, ground out, or get a hit. While three of those still aren't helpful at all, you are statistically more likely to get a hit with only four things that you do, as opposed to five. He has managed to hit 5 of his 18 home runs this year with runners in scoring position, but he most often is just walked.
Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
There are quite a few good outfielders left (Upton, Soriano, Werth), so it's hard to decide who to fill this last slot. However, I'm goint to have to go with Braun here. His 16 HRs, .318 BA, 51 RBIs, and 53 runs help him to edge out the competition. Upton's numbers look very impressive as well with a higher average (.325) and only 2 less home runs. Braun's runs scored and batted in are both higher, as is his on-base percentage. Upton has a better slugging percentage, though. These two are very close competition, but I think I'm going to stick with Braun, as his numbers are slightly better.
That wraps things up for my 2009 All-Star picks. Don't forget to read my American League picks as well and leave comments on your own opinions on who's deserving.
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