If you haven’t read my thoughts on who the NL All Stars should be, click here.

 

The American League team is going to be hard to gauge.  Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols left for greener pastures in Detroit and Anaheim respectively.  It opens up the NL race completely but it makes the AL picture much murkier.  Adrian Gonzalez and Mark Teixiera are having very down years for them but Red Sox and Yankees players always receive a ton of votes.  Pujols has been God awful until the last two weeks but has such a huge name that it won’t matter.  The Rangers are back to back AL champions and have a loaded team that are doing well at the box office.  Their attendance boost and past success will bode well for their players.  Anyway, on to my selections.

 

American League All-Stars

 

First Base

Paul Konerko – Chicago White Sox – .371 average  league leading .455 OBP  1.063 OPS   1.5 WAR   8 home runs  24 RBI  10 doubles  53 hits.  Severely undervalued and underappreciated by voters.  Belongs on the team.

Prince Fielder – Detroit Tigers – .292 average/.354 OBP/.826 OPS   .2 WAR  7 home runs  24 RBI  8 doubles.  Hasn’t hit his stride yet or completely adjusted to his new league and team.  A really down year though for AL 1B.

Albert Pujols – LA Angels of Anaheim – .213 average/.254 OBP/.587 OPS  -.1 WAR  4 home runs 20 RBI 9 doubles and 1 steal.  Horrible year so far but biggest name.  Probably going to win vote.  Has been hot last 2 weeks though

Chris Davis – Baltimore Orioles – .300 average/.336 OBP/.814 OPS   .4 WAR  6 home runs 16 RBI 7 doubles.  One of the big surprises for the Orioles helping them be in 1st place.

Paul Konerko is criminally underrated.  He deserves to get the start if for no other reason other than to finally be appreciated for how good he has been.  Pujols, AGon and Tex have been awful this year.  Fielder has been ok but not starting ASG good.  Konerko just keeps on going and putting up amazing numbers for willing the White Sox to a much better record than they have any right being.

 

 Second Base

Ian Kinsler – Texas Rangers – .275 average/.345 OBP/.790 OPS  .6 WAR   5 home runs  18 RBI  6 steals  12 doubles 2 triples.  Team in 1st place

Dustin Pedroia – Boston Red Sox – .298 average/.352 OBP/.821 OPS   1.6 WAR  5 home runs 20 RBI 3 steals  14 doubles 1 triple.  Good defense.   Team in last place.

Robinson Cano – New York Yankees – .304 average/.362 OBP/.850 OPS  1.7 WAR  5 home runs 17 RBI 1 steal  league leading 16 doubles.  Team in 4th place

Kelly Johnson – Toronto Blue Jays – .252 average/.356 OBP/.767 OPS  2.0 WAR  8 home runs  23 RBI  5 steals but only 2 doubles and 0 triples.  Somehow with 6 errors his DWAR is 1.2 while others are much lower

Jason Kipnis – Cleveland Indians – .266 average/.328 OBP/.756 OPS   1.3 WAR   6 home runs  24 RBI  6 steals  4 doubles and a league leading 3 triples.  The Indians are the second biggest surprise in baseball right now and a lot of it has to do with the young Kipnis.  I think he is about a year away from being an All-Star.

Cano gets the nod based on having slightly better numbers than Pedroia across the board.  I feel like he will continue to improve upon those numbers even as the Yankees struggle w/o Mariano Rivera

 

Third Base

Adrian Beltre – Texas Rangers – .308 average/.331 OBP/.876 OPS   1.2 WAR   9 home runs  28 RBI  10 doubles  1 steal.  2x AS, 3x Silver Slugger, 3x Gold Glover.  Team in 1st place

Miguel Cabrera – Detroit Tigers – .306 average/.363 OBP/.854 OPS   .6 WAR  8 home runs 34 RBI  8 doubles  1 steal.  Hasn’t been as much of a liability at 3B as everyone thought he’d be.  Team in 3rd place

Alex Rodriguez – New York Yankees – ..281 average/.372 OBP/.815 OPS   .9 WAR   7 home runs   18 RBI  5 doubles.  Pretty much a shell of his former shelf after getting off steroids.  Team in 4th place.

Kyle Seager – Seattle Mariners – .270 average/.310 OBP/.770 OPS   1.4 WAR  5 home runs  26 RBI  11 doubles  1 triple and 5 steals.  Versatile – can play 2B, SS and 3B.  Team in 3rd place.

Mike Moustakas – Kansas City Royals – .279 average/.333 OBP/.830 OPS   1.8 WAR   7 home runs   19 RBI  11 doubles and 1 steal.  ASG is in KC.  Royals need a rep and Hosmer has been AWFUL.  Down year for 3B just like 1B.  Might get a spot on the team along w/ Beltre & Cabrera.

I think Beltre should get the nod.  There is not much difference in this entire list of guys.  He plays for the reigning back to back AL Champions.  His team has biggest lead in baseball right now.  But this spot is waiting for someone to break out and EARN it.

 

Shortstop

Derek Jeter – New York Yankees – .348 average/.389 OBP/.873 OPS   1.0 WAR   5 home runs  16 RBI  10 doubles  3 steals.  League leading 64 hits.  Always gets the votes even though last few years didn’t deserve it.  Finally playing like Jeter of Old instead of Old Jeter.  Don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t get the votes now as he climbs up the all time hits list.  Currently tied for 16th all time with Paul Waner.  If he continues hitting like this, he could potentially pass Willie Mays for 11th all time by end of the year

Elvis Andrus – Texas Rangers – .309 average/.381 OBP/.792 OPS   1.7 WAR   1 home run  21 RBI  8 steals  9 doubles  League Leading 3 triples.  Better defensively than Jeter and higher walk total.  Surely Jeter’s average will come down.

Mike Aviles – Boston Red Sox – .271 average/.296 OBP/.771 OPS   1.8 WAR   8 home runs   28 RBI  5 steals  13 doubles.  Horrible OBP.  Not sure how he has a higher WAR than Jeter and Andrus when he has 3 errors and Jeter’s average is 50 points higher than his on base percentage.

Asdrubal Cabrera – Cleveland Indians – .308 average/.406 OBP/.913 OPS   2.0 WAR   5 home runs   19 RBI  2 steals  14 doubles.  Again, not sure how the WAR can be double Jeter although he has played less games.  3 errors in the field.  Does have a higher OBP, doubles and RBI.  RBI is overrated because that has more to do with your spot in the batting order and what people ahead of you are doing.

JJ Hardy – Baltimore Orioles – .247 average/.294 OBP/.756 OPS   2.1 WAR   9 home runs  21 RBI  10 doubles and 1 triple.  .991 fielding percentage.  Helping Baltimore stun the baseball world but not quite as good as Aviles across the board.

 

I despise the Yankees with every ounce and fiber of my being but I respect the hell out of Derek Jeter.  Not just because he gives his one night stands a gift basket as a parting gift but because he is a helluva ballplayer.  I think he’ll play long enough to end up in the Top 10 in All Time Hits.  Maybe even the Top 5.  Doesn’t even need 400 more hits to pass Tris Speaker for 5th place.  If he plays 2 more years after this season until he’s 40, he can make it.  That would be 20 years which is less than others on the list that he’d pass (but he has more games in a season than they do).  In comparison, Tris Speaker has played 350 more games than Jeter so far.  So if Jeter passes him in 2 seasons, they’ll be about even in games played even though Speaker played 22 years and Jeter would be at 20.

 

Catcher

AJ Pierzynski – Chicago White Sox – .303 average/.342 OBP/.828 OPS   .5 WAR   6 home runs   28 RBI  6 doubles  1 triple.  Always the center of controversy.  The biggest douchebag in baseball but his teammates love him while everyone else hates his guts.  Knows how to bend all the rules and embraces being the bad guy.  Value is mostly in being a leader and taking pressure off teammates but has called multiple no hitters in his career.  Having a great year offensively compared to his average seasons of late.

Joe Mauer – Minnesota Twins – .296 average/.409 OBP/.810 OPS   1.2 WAR   1 home run  19 RBI  2 steals  11 doubles and 1 triple.  Has split time between catcher and 1B so that will hurt him.  Average is down for someone that is a former 3 time batting champ.  However, Twins need a representative and he’s their most recognizable player, video game cover boy and commercial star.

Matt Wieters – Baltimore Orioles – .238 average/.321 OBP/.784 OPS   1.5 WAR  8 home runs  21 RBI  7 doubles  1 triple.  2 weeks ago, Wieters would have been the shoo in for deserving the start.  The Orioles are the talk of baseball and he was their biggest catalyst.  However, the bottom has fallen out of his batting average of late.  He can’t buy a hit.  He has to improve upon that if the O’s plan to stay in contention.

Carlos Santana – Cleveland Indians – .257 average/.374 OBP/.779 OPS   1.0 WAR   5 home runs   23 RBI  2 steals 7 doubles.  Has gotten a few games at 1B and 1 at DH so far.  Keeps the legs fresh but hurts his case for being starting catcher in the ASG.  Has helped lead a surprising 1st place Indians team.

 

If I had to judge solely on today’s stats.  I probably would have bit my tongue off and went with AJ.  However, I’m going to do some prognosticating and say that Wieters will heat up again at the plate and raise his average.  The added boost along with his power numbers and that the Orioles need to be rewarded for their amazing start, Wieters gets the nod as the starter from me.

 

Outfield

Josh Hamilton – Texas Rangers – .379 average/.429 OBP/1.187 OPS   3.8 WAR   18 home runs  49 RBI  4 steals  7 doubles.  Leading league in HRs, RBI, OPS, Slugging %, OPS+ and total bases.  Had one of the greatest weeks in the history of the game with 9 home runs including 4 in one day.  Easiest no brainer on the team.

Adam Jones – Baltimore Orioles – .311 average/.357 OBP/.958 OPS   2.0 WAR   14 home runs   29 RBI  6 steals  9 doubles and 1 triple.  Has several game winning hits for the O’s this season.  Emotional leader.  Becoming a star.

Jose Bautista – Toronto Blue Jays – .233 average/.337 OBP/.809 OPS   .7 WAR  12 home runs  29 RBI  3 steals  4 doubles.  One of the best offensive players of the last few years struggling so far.  Regression or just a slump that he’ll get out of?  Still showing great power though.  Might get enough votes to start just based on the last couple of seasons of hype.

Josh Reddick – Oakland Athletics – .272 average/.337 OBP/.864 OPS   1.7 WAR  11 home runs  24 RBI  5 steals  8 doubles  1 triple.  Deserves to start more than Bautista.  Oakland needs a representative and he is the best choice by the numbers.

Curtis Granderson – New York Yankees – .256 average/.359 OBP/.907 OPS  .9 WAR   14 home runs  25 RBI  1 steal  5 doubles and 1 triple.  Numbers are slightly down from last year but a Yankee is going to get votes.  Could definitely see him squeak into the starting lineup.

Austin Jackson – Detroit Tigers – .331 average/.414 OBP/.958 OPS   2.4 WAR   5 home runs   17 RBI  6 steals  2 triples and 10 doubles.  Done an amazing job cutting down on his strikeouts and improving his contact rate.  Been the offense star for the Tigers even more so than Cabrera and Fielder.  Youngster to keep an eye on for sure.

Josh Willingham – Minnesota Twins – .283 average/.400 OBP/.965 OPS   1.1 WAR   8 home runs  27 RBI  1 steal  13 doubles and 1 triple.  The Twins are horrible but Willingham has been their bright spot.  Every team needs a representative and if the fans don’t vote Joe Mauer in as catcher, Willingham is the one that deserves to represent.

Matt Joyce – Tampa Bay Rays – .274 average/.391 OBP/.917 OPS  1.7 WAR   8 home runs   24 RBI  2 steals  4 doubles and leading league with 3 triples.  Rays just keep on rolling even with an incredibly low payroll.  Longoria has missed about 1/2 the games so far but they still keep winning.  If the fans don’t vote in Longoria, then Joyce deserves to be selected by the coaches to go along with Fernando Rodney and James Shields and maybe Hellickson and Price on the pitching side.

Ichiro Suzuki – Seattle Mariners – Last year was 1st time in his career he wasn’t an AS.  Will Japan turn out to vote online to make sure that doesn’t happen again?  One of the best singles hitters of my lifetime along with Pete Rose, Tony Gwynn, Derek Jeter and Wade Boggs.  He’ll finish at about 2600 hits at the end of the season if he stays healthy in 12 seasons which is just insane.  He doesn’t deserve to be on the team this year but in 2 years when he’s ready to get to 3000, he deserves a spot.

 

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Josh Hamilton is a shoo in for the All Star Team.  If for some reason the idiot fans don’t vote him in as a starter, someone will get “injured” so he can be named a starter by the coaches.  Not even two months into the season and he’s already at almost a 4 WAR?  Unreal.

 

Adam Jones deserves to be a starter for the ASG.  He has carried the Orioles to 1st place when NO ONE thought they had a chance of finishing higher than last place.  He’s been consistent.  He’s been clutch.  It’s either the return of the cartoon bird or Adam Jones responsible for the resurgence so vote accordingly.

 

My final outfield starter is Austin Jackson.  It takes tremendous talent to outhit Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera when you are on the same team as them.

 

Last but not least:

 

Designated Hitter

Edwin Encarnacion – Toronto Blue Jays – .269 average/.337 OBP/.910 OPS   1.3 WAR   14 home runs   37 RBI  6 steals and 10 doubles.  Picking up the slack for Bautista.  Can play 1B and 3B which makes him more versatile than the others on the list.

Adam Dunn – Chicago White Sox – .243 average/.386 OBP/.965 OPS   .9 WAR   14 home runs  33 RBI  9 doubles.  Terrific recovery from one of the worst seasons in MLB history.  Definite comeback player of the year so far.  Leading league in walks with 35 but also leading in strikeouts with 66.

David Ortiz – Boston Red Sox – .315 average/.383 OBP/.966 OPS   1.0 WAR   10 home runs  30 RBI  15 doubles.  Probably will get enough votes to start but does not deserve it this year.

I’m going with Encarnacion because he’s more versatile.  I abhor the DH.  Learn to play defense and to be valuable to your team as a well rounded player.  Dunn is a liability on defense and the White Sox have to hurt their defense in order to start him in interleague games in the NL.  Same with Ortiz.

 

Did I leave someone out?  Agree?  DIsagree?  Feel free to comment.