All-Star Picks Part 2: National League

It's been pretty late coming, but still in time for the game itself... here is part 2 of my All-Star picks, recognizing players who the majority may overlook. This time, I'll go through the National League players. For the American League, see my previous post.

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.

My All-Star Picks

Let's face it. Just about every year, players get voted into the MLB All-Star Game that don't really deserve to be starters. They just get voted in because they're the big names that everybody knows, even though they either had a bad season or just not as good as some other players at their position. If you really follow the game in-depth, I'm sure you have complaints about the selections from year-to-year. But it is fan voting, so in the end it's as much of a popularity contest as American Idol.

Nevertheless, I like to look over the players each year and assemble what I feel is the truly deserving All Star Team. Any other baseball fans are welcome to add comments, weighing in on their own opinions, agreeing or disagreeing. This is just how I feel.

American League

First Base

Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins

This guy's definitely a solid producer with a batting average over .300, an on-base percentage of over .400, and a nice 14 home runs so far (3rd among AL first basemen). I would normally go with the likes of Teixeira, but the two additional home runs don't make up for the batting average that's about 70 points lower. You also have to take into account the fact that Morneau's 47 RBIs is the most among AL first basemen. Run generation--whether it be scoring or batting in--is a very important thing to look at when measuring a player's value.





Second Base

Aaron Hill, Toronto Blue Jays

This is a pretty easy pick and it would be surprising if he doesn't actually win. No other AL second basemen really stand out at all. If you're looking for power, Hill has it with 12 home runs. If you're looking for batting, Hill has it with a batting average over .300. No one else really comes close to blending these two aspects together. Only Kinsler beats him in HRs, but his batting average is only around .270. There are some other players at the position who have put up good batting averages, but haven't been really knocking in runs all that well. The only other player I can think of is Pedroia, simply because he scores a lot of runs.



Shortstop

Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay Rays

Obviously, Derek Jeter's going to win. Doesn't he always? But I've always felt Jeter to be an overrated shortstop. If you actually look at his performance, it's only mediocre most years. He does enough things well enough to qualify as a Major League starter on most teams, but I wouldn't rank him among the best.

Now Jeter's actually having a good first half, so let's not take that away from him. As of writing this, he's posted a .319 BA, .393 OBP, hit 7 home runs, and stole 10 bases. Not bad at all. He also scored 33 runs and knocked in 25. But despite these numbers being good, there is still someone with better numbers to consider. He may share his last name with a type of pear, but Jason Bartlett can pretty much match or exceed Jeter's numbers at every turn. The seven homers? Got that. The batting average? Try .373. On-base Percentage? .418. Stolen bases? 14. RBIs? 30. He may have one less run scored, but considering everything else that he's done, it's clear to me that he's out performed Jeter and every other shortstop in the league.



Third Base

Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays

It's pretty clear to me that Longoria is the most solid third basemen in the American League. He bats over .300, has 13 HRs, and 55 RBIs. A couple years back, I was most impressed by the likes of Michael Young, but he hasn't really been performing well enough to match Longoria's numbers. I can't really say that anyone has. 3rd in average, 1st in home runs and RBIs among AL third basemen... I can't think of anyone better to start at the position for the AL team. I mean, not only does Longoria lead AL third basemen in RBIs, but he leads the entire league. That's not something that you can just overlook. And he doesn't really have much competition this year as far as I can see.



Catcher

Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins

This is one that just might go to someone like Jason Varitek, just because everyone knows Varitek. And despite a solid 10 home runs, Varitek's batting average is a miserable .248. I think Mauer is the better choice. He's batting over .400 so far and in half the at bats of someone like Victor Martinez, he's managed to get 3 more homers (12) and bat in almost as many runs (35, compared to Martinez's 38). This is definitely a guy to consider. He's up there on the catcher hitting categories and if his pace continues, he's going to have an excellent season. I'm holding out hope that his great first-half performance doesn't go unrewarded, because I feel he really deserves the starting spot.

Outfielders



Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles

Here's a guy who essentially came out of nowhere. He was pretty much a bench-warmer his first two years with Seattle. Last year, he got to actually experience full playing time with Baltimore. He it 9 home runs and batted .270. Those numbers will impress no one and only would make you a starter if the team has no one better. So why is he now an all-star candidate? Well, it's only June and he already exceed his career high for home runs in a single season with 11 (and prior to this season he only had 12 in his entire career). He's also posting a nice .347 batting average. A huge turn-around if you ask me. I can't find three outfielders in the AL that exceed what this guy has been doing so far, and consider the fact that his previous career makes him completely unknown, he won't likely be voted in. I think that's more than enough reason to mention Jones here. He's a good example of one of those truly deserving players that probably will be overlooked for those with long-running careers of superstar performance. If you mention the name "Adam Jones" around most sports fans, they'll probably assume you're talking about 'Pacman'.



Jason Bay, Boston Red Sox

Jason Bay's a name I've heard for a while now, but I always think of him as a Pirate. Probably because he's been on that team for a good number of seasons. However, now he is lending his terrific bat to the Red Sox, and doing wonders for them, as far as I can see. So far, he's posting a respectable .286 batting average with 16 home runs (that's 2nd in the AL). He also batted in 51 runs (also 2nd), so it's no wonder he makes my list for AL Outfielders. It's an obvious pick, and I would be surprised if he didn't actually make it to the real game.





Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

There's not much to say about this one, other than pointing out the obvious that Hunter is another very good outfielder and deserves to make the list. So far, he's posted 12 HRs with a batting average that's just over .300. He's also knocked in 42 and scored 38. Add in his 10 stolen bases, and you have a solid offensive player who can make things happen for you.

And let's not forget that Hunter's a pretty good outfielder as far as the fielding aspect goes as well. I've seen him make some pretty nice catches at the wall here and there. His glove is not to be overlooked.


That pretty much sums up my American League All-Star picks and why I think they're good bets for the game. For my National League picks, see this post.