My All-Star Team: The Best of the Rest

We tried to fill out the rosters for the All-Star Game. I picked the hitters from the American League, the hitters from the National League, and the American League pitchers, and the National League pitchers, but still we had 5 teams without a representative. And since Major League Baseball has a silly rule that every team has to have a representative, we'll comply as well by listing the best of the rest from the 5 teams without a clear All-Star:

Baltimore Orioles: Ty Wigginton got an honorable mention at 2nd base for us and in a year of infield injuries (especially with Dustin Pedroia down), he may be a good a pick as any from the struggling Os. His .262/.347/.473 line with a .356 wOBA doesn't scream out "All Star", but 14 HR and 42 RBIs may put him over the hump. This is not a good team and it shows that a guy with a WAR of 0.7 is their best candidate for the All-Star Game. ESPN also goes with Wigginton. Counting Stats: .262 avg, 30 runs, 14 HR, 42 RBI. Photo from SNY

Honorable Mentions: Luke Scott (.274/.348/.520, .376 wOBA, 12 HR, 30 RBI) could certainly slot in as an OF/DH type on the team as well, though there are plenty of good candidates for the role and Scott just hit the DL. Brian Matusz is about as close as the Os come to having a pitching candidate but although it's a good start for the rookie, 2-9 with a 4.90 ERA isn't enough to play in the Mid-Summer Classic. Nick Markakis leads the team with a WAR of 1.7 and his slash line looks great at .303/.399/.425, but with only 3 HR and 24 RBI, he's going to have a hard time beating out a lot of good candidates in the OF.

Cleveland Indians: With Cliff Lee, Victor Martinez and CC Sabathia traded away and Grady Sizemore hurt, the Tribe is without most of their most reliable all- candidates but that doesn't mean that Shin-Soo Choo doesn't deserve to play in the All-Star Game. Choo's .289/.391/.480 line, 13 HR, 12 SB, and good defense add up to a 3.1 WAR so far which is certainly All-Star material (the only OFs in baseball with a higher WAR are Carl Crawford, Josh Hamilton, Matt Holliday, and Alex Rios). ESPN and The Cleveland Plain Dealer agree with my Choo suggestion. Counting Stats: .281 avg, 47 runs, 13 HR, 43 RBI, 12 SB. Picture from The Cleveland Plain Dealer

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My All-Star Team: National League Pitchers

So far we've covered the hitters from the American League, the hitters from the National League, and the American League pitchers, so now we'll try to tackle the National League pitching. Again, we'll use some of the same criteria we used in the American League to dwindle down the competition until we find the winners. 8 starters, 5 relievers. And since I may have erred in leaving Jose Valverde out yesterday, we'll start with the relievers today (for some reason, Baseball-Reference hasn't updated from last night so we're missing the Arthur Rhodes blow-up and any other pitching performances from last night in the analysis):

Relievers: Again, 25 innings pitched qualifies you for our All-Star pickings so 66 National League relievers are in our mix to start things out. We'll start as we did yesterday by eliminating anyone with a 3.50 ERA or higher. So say so long to 20-save man Francisco Cordero (4.25 ERA), 15-save Octavio Dotel (4.85), Wilton Lopez (0.88 BB/9 but 3.52 ERA), Rafael Betancourt (6.6 SO/BB but a 5.33 ERA), Joel Hanrahan (13.07 K/9 but 4.26 ERA) or Arizona's closers from 2010 Chad Qualls (8.88 ERA) or Aaron Heilman (3.51 ERA). That eliminates 31 players to quickly chop the relievers list to 35 as we try to get down to 5.

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My All-Star Team: American League Pitchers

We've tackled the hitters from the American League and the hitters from the National League, now we'll try to tackle the American League pitching. There's only one qualification: starters need to qualify for the ERA title. Let's go through process of elimination to fill out the rest of our team which will include 8 starters and 5 relievers.

Starters: 55 starting pitchers qualify for the ERA title. We need to whittle that 55 down to 8 so let's start by cutting all pitchers with an ERA that isn't under 4.50. It's not the best statistic to start out with since it eliminates hard-luck guys like Gavid Floyd (4.80 ERA but 3.47 FIP), Luke Hochevar (4.96 ERA but 3.86 FIP) and Brandon Morrow (4.50 ERA but 3.43 FIP). It also eliminates such big names as A.J. Burnett (5.25 ERA), Ben Sheets (5.01 ERA), Jake Peavy (4.71 ERA), John Lackey (4.69 ERA), and Mark Buehrle (4.58 ERA). Some of them may have some great peripheral statistics and just have gotten burned, but if you have an ERA of 4.50 or above, you're not an All Star in my book.

Now we're down to 30 pitchers. Next we'll eliminate anyone whose winning percentage is less that .450 and haven't won more than 5 games. That gets rid of Zack Greinke (3-8), Dallas Braden (4-7), Jeremy Guthrie (3-9) and Jeremy Bondermon (4-5). Greinke is a tough loss here, but at 3-8, it's tough to convince me he's an All Star. I know that Win-Loss record is not a good metric to go on, but the truth is that despite Greinke or Braden's great pitching, their teams haven't won enough games to get them to the All-Star game. 26 left.

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My All-Star Team: National League Hitters

Yesterday we tackled the American League All-Star Hitters. Today we move on to the batters from the Senior Circuit that are worthy of making the 2010 All-Star Game in Anaheim. While there were a couple of tough selections on the American League side, with more teams in the National League, it's going to be even harder. Since there is no DH, I'll be taking two extra hitters to fill out my 21-man position-player roster. And away we go (all stats min 100 PAs):

Catcher: Geovany Soto, Miguel Olivo and Brian McCann. While in the American League we have Jorge Posada, Joe Mauer and Victor Martinez (not to mention John Buck and Mike Napoli), in the National League, the pickings look a little different. But these three are definitely worthy (although all but maybe McCann will be beaten out by Yadier Molina it seems). Olivo has revived his career in Colorado and is hitting .301/.365/.523 with 9 HR, 30 RBI, 4 SB and a .380 wOBA. Olivo's OPS is first among NL Catchers and his wOBA is second to Soto. Speaking of Soto, he has enjoyed a very nice bounce-back year in Chicago. While the rest of his team is underperforming, he's been quite good. His .408 OBP is tops (by far) among NL catchers and actually leads all Major League catchers. Meanwhile, McCann benefits from needing a third catcher here, though his .377 OBP, 8 HR, 30 RBI and .357 wOBA for the first-place Braves is nothing to sneeze at. McCann ranks ahead of Soto on WAR (2.0 to 1.6) mostly due to defensive adjustments, but Olivo's fielding puts him in the lead in that category (2.6). "Counting" Stats: Soto .268 avg, 8 HR, 18 RBI; Olivo .301 avg, 9 HR, 30 RBI, 4 SB; McCann .258, 8 HR, 30 RBI, 3 SB. Honorable Mentions: George Kottaras (.822 OPS and .364 wOBA both third among NL catchers) and Nick Hundley (.822 OPS and .347 wOBA for first-place Padres). Picture from the Denver Post.

First Base: Adrian Gonzalez, Joey Votto, Aubrey Huff, and Albert Pujols. The first place I'll take an extra hitter is at first where there's a ton of legit players. "Gonzo" leads the National League 1st basemen in WAR with 3.3 which is certainly a combination of his bat (.313/.411/.559 with 15 HR, 47 RBI, and a .407 wOBA) and his glove (league-leading at 1st) for the surprise first-place Pads. Votto leads all NL 1B in wOBA with .415 mark in a breakout year for him where he's matched offensive numbers with Gonzalez (15 HR and 47 RBI as well). Huff has been the biggest surprise of this group, in my opinion since I thought it was an awful move for the Giants to sign him. Huff's .311/.401/.549 line is excellent but his .411 wOBA puts him second to Votto among NL 1B, and his extremely low 11.5% strikeout percentage to go along with solid power numbers and at least average defensive  should earn him a trip to Anaheim. And Sir Albert isn't having his best year but still leads the NL 1B in RBI and is tied for the lead in HR and has 6 SB to go along with that. He will be voted in as the starter at 1st as the NL's leading vote getter and even in a "down year" for Pujols, you know he will be there among NL MVP candidates at the end of the year. Counting Stats: Gonzalez .313 avg, 15 HR, 47 RBI; Votto .310 avg, 15 HR, 47 RBI, 7 SB; Huff .311 avg, 12 HR, 37 RBI, 3 SB; Pujols .302 avg, 15 HR, 50 RBI, 6 SB. Honorable Mentions: Adam Dunn (17 HR leads NL 1B), Troy Glaus (.860 OPS as offensive prowess for Braves), Prince Fielder (numbers slightly down but still a force with a .378 wOBA), and Ryan Howard (coming on late with a .294 avg, 14 HR, and 52 RBI). Picture from Bleacher Report

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My All-Star Team: American League Hitters

The Major League Baseball All-Star Game in baseball is probably not a game that should count and sometimes the fans seem to get the wrong players elected--but then again, that doesn't make it different than any other form of democracy. And sometimes, people certainly get picked for the wrong reasons as The Common Man showed  last week. In the end, the Mid-Summer Classic is all about being an exhibition of baseball's best players. So I'm going to take only the best players, rule-about-taking-one-player-per-team be damned! Here's my list of the best candidates for the All-Star Game starting with the AL guys who will be swinging the bat (all stats min 100 PAs):

Catcher: Jorge Posada, Victor Martinez, and Joe Mauer. Mauer is the leading vote getter for all of Major League Baseball so he's in without a doubt. But if you were picking a player on pure stats, this wouldn't be the year to take Mauer at first glance (his numbers perfectly mirror his 2007 output). But when you drill down, Mauer has still had a pretty great season and is worth of an All-Star nod. Although not as adept defensively, Posada and Martinez may beat Mauer with the bat this year. Although he's been battling injuries (and therefore spent quite a bit of time at DH as well as only racked up 171 PAs), Posada leads all the catchers in OPS (slash lines of .287/.398/.538) and wOBA (.406 to Martinez's .363 and Mauer's .356). Martinez leads all catchers with 29 XBH so far this season. Amazingly (considering his lack of speed), one stat that favors Jorge this season is GIDP: Mauer has 14, Martinez 9 and Posada 1. "Counting" stats: Mauer .304 avg, 3 HR, 21 RBI; Martinez .291 avg, 9 HR, 37 RBI; Posada .287 avg, 9 HR, 25 RBI. Honorable Mentions: John Buck (.271/.309/.532, .356 wOBA, 12 HR, 38 RBI) and Mike Napoli (.251/.329/.478, .354 wOBA, 11 HR, 27 RBI). Picture from The Star-Ledger.

Firstbase: Justin Morneau, Miguel Cabrera and Kevin Youkilis. All three players are having monster years and all three are early candidates for MVP. Morneau's numbers are off the charts (almost Mauer like) with a ridiculous slash line of .340/.448/.622 and a wOBA of .452 to go along with 15 HR and 47 RBI. That wOBA is the highest (among all players who have qualified for the batting title) in the Majors. Second is Youk (.440) and third is Cabrera (.437). Mourneau's OPS of 1.070 leads all 1Bs trailed by Cabrera (1.041) and Youkilis (1.026). The WAR numbers tell the difference thus far though. Due to extremely positive fielding numbers, Morneau takes the lead with 4.3, Youkilis is seen about even and Cabrera is marked down for his defense. Cabrera leads in the counting stats while Youkilis has been hitting the tar out of the ball recently for the surging Red Sox. Morneau has the lead and should start but the other two should be named replacements on the team. Counting stats: Morneau .340 avg, 15 HR, 47 RBI; Cabrera .328 avg, 19 HR, 60 RBI; Youkilis .312 avg, 14 HR, 47 RBI. Honorable Mentions: Paul Konerko (.296/.396/.574, 17 HR, 51 RBI, .413 wOBA) and Billy Butler (.330/.383/.491, 7 HR, 37 RBI, .381 wOBA). Picture from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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Barack Obama: Fixing the Economy, Ending the War, Inquiring About the Cutter

Barack Obama threw out the first pitch tonight. Just wanted to let you know that. The oddsmakers said that he wouldn't make a fool of himself, and Obama sort of delivered with a slow, wobbly pitch that reached Pujols without a bounce. He did so wearing his hometeam White Sox jacket, explaining that he had to be true to his allegiences and because the First Lady thinks he looks cute in the jacket.

He made his way through all the players making small talk. He joked with Ryan Howard and Albert Pujols about not winning the Home Run Derby on their own turf.

And he asked Mariano Rivera about the cutter. Yup, about the cutter. Mo was interviewed by Ken Rosenthal who handed him his All Star Game MVP trophy about meeting President Obama and Rivera said that it was really cool because the Commander-in-Chief asked him about his cutter.

This is good news for Rivera. Obama threw the first pitch in the 2005 ALCS and the White Sox went on to win 8 straight games and the World Series. Then-Senator Obama played basketball with UNC and predicted they'd win the NCAA tournament and they did. He campaigned with the Rooneys in Pittsburgh and predicted they'd win the Super Bowl and they did so.

And tonight he asked about Mo's cutter and he recorded a save in the All Star Game. Hopefully that means he'll be closing the World Series out as well. He's now got the Obama blessing.

All Star Game MVP?

I give it to Mo. He just set the record for saves in the All Star Game. Why not? Not real, clear-cut winner. If not, probably Curtis Granderson.

But just give it Mariano Rivera

Please

Update 11:27 PM: Yeah...um... Carl Crawford. For a catch. You have GOT to be kidding me. I know it was a great catch, but um, I think Mariano Rivera just got shafted again.

The All Star Game Is Upon Us

Some ideas I have for the All-Star Week:

• Stop having the game count for something. It's ridiculous. I rather it be rock, paper, scissors or heads or tails. How about this? Just make the best record have the advantage? With interleague play and an unbalanced schedule, it's not more unfair than having record decide who gets home field in the League Championship Series when those teams may play only two series during the year. And since the play different teams in interleague play and different strengths in their own division, it's not like those teams have an equal footing. Just give teams a reason to keep on winning at the end of the season even when they clinch. What could be better for baseball?
• Add a skills competition to the All-Star Week. Cycle competition. Imagine guys like Jose Reyes, Carl Crawford, Chone Figgins, Juan Pierre and, even Brett Gardner, racing around the bases to see who can score the quickest. Fastest Pitch. Warm them up and let them rip. 5 Pitches. Fastest ones advance. Fielding Competition. Have two guys from the other league alternate hitting hit groundballs to the fielder until they let one get passed them. I don't know which ones of these you could do. But there is much more skill than hitting a home run in baseball and you might as well bring it out if you can.
• Shrink the Home Run Derby. Two rounds. 4 from each league. Best in each league makes it to the final. Let it fly.
• Get rid of the pitcher hitting. I can sort of understand keeping this during real games, but you can't have it during an All Star Game. Who watches to see Roy Halladay or Dan Haren hit? What if one of these guys gets hurt hitting or on the basepaths? Just stupid if you ask me

A little All-Star Game version of the links before we get the Midsummer Classic started:

• Rob Neyer gives his all time AL All-Stars. Did we really need a Seattle Pilot? I think that some of these are a little bit of a stretch but I think overall, it was a nice job.
• The OC Register has a different type of All-Star team -- the all-tainted All-Star team.
• President Obama will throw out the first pitch with all the other living presidents there. Think security will be tough?
• The New York Times says that some players have prepared questions for the Commander-in-Chief
• Joel Sherman has some ideas on how to improve the Home Run Derby
• IIATMS has some thoughts on the Home Run Derby as well
• So does Shysterball's Craig Calcaterra (via NBC Sports)
• Bert Blyleven says that Bud Selig has given the All Star Game meaning again. I have to disagree. This sounds like a man kissing butt to feel like a Hall of Famer. What meaning does the game really have?
• The Star-Telegram says that Bud Selig can't have it both ways: meaning it can't be an exhibition and count for something (basically what I said above).

Enjoy!