NL All-Star Projections

Well I’m sure you were all bedazzled with my outstanding display of baseball knowledge in my first article on my projected American League All Stars, now I feel it is necessary to put my American League bias aside, and show some love for the national league. Sure maybe this team would get beaten by the Triple A all stars given how horrible the National League is, but hey, people watch the Futures Game don’t they? Without further adieu, the losing team in this years all star game.

The Starters

1b: Prince Fielder (MIL) Wait a minute time out, a starter in the all star game is supposed to be the best at his position right? So why aren’t Albert Pujols or Ryan Howard here? The answer? Because this year is proving maybe they aren’t the best after all. Fielder’s MLB 1b leading 26 home runs and 59 RBI earn him this spot. This kid is a star in the making.

2b: Chase Utley (PHI) Unlike with first base, here is a preseason prediction that proved to be upheld. Utley sp orts a spectacular .398 OBP to go along with an average well over .300. Did I mention he’s on pace for 126 RBI? That’s impressive no matter what position you are playing, let alone what is supposed to be the league’s least productive position.

3b: Miguel Cabrera (FLA) To all of you David Wright lovers, get over it. Miguel Cabrera is the best third baseman in the national league until proven otherwise. His average of .328 and OBP of .398 well surpass Wrights (.280 and .373 respectively) not to mention Cabrera has more home runs and RBI.

SS: Jose Reyes (NYM) This guy is really proving that he is the future of this position. His projected numbers include an OBP of .400, a batting average over .300, a run total of over 100 and a remarkable stolen base total of 87! I said he’s the future of the position, cross town rival Derek Jeter better watch out, the future may be now.

Of: Matt Holliday (COL) What a year this guy is having. Who would have placed him as the top outfielder in the national league before the season began? Probably nobody, but I bet those doubters won’t have a hard time admitting they were wrong when they see he’s batting .366!

Of: Carlos Lee (HOU) Houston has had a disappointing year, but at least they have seen that they made the right call in signing Lee. IF he continues hitting at this rate he’ll have a somewhat disappointing 27 home runs given how he’s had over 30 the past 4 years, yet people will forget about that when they see his RBI total amount to a career high 132.

Of: Ken Griffey Jr. (CIN) Yeah I know that my fantasy league hates me for stealing him the one year he’s finally healthy, yet believe it or not I tried really hard to find a guy more deserving, yet found myself coming up empty. Eric Byrnes has had an impressive year, but not enough to have him overtake Griffey, whose on pace for about 100 RBI and 42 homers. O and by the way, his OBPS sits at well over .900.

C: Russell Martin (LAD) For some god awful reason, Paul Lo Duca was leading in the voting for quite some time, adding to my reasons for hating the all star voting method. At the same time however, the fan’s realization that Martin is the deserving candidate, as evidenced by his rise over Lo Duca in the voting, gives me renewed hope in America’s fan base. He’s on pace for over 90 runs, nearly 20 homers and 101 RBI. Maybe those numbers aren’t extraordinary, but for a catcher they are pretty damn good.

Sp: Jake Peavy (SD) Peavy is the only pitcher whose numbers can rival Dan Haren’s up till this point. He holds a spectacular record of 9-1, an ERA of 1.98 and a WHIP of 1.020. He also leads the national league in strikeouts with 110. Easy choice here.

The Reserves:

1b: Albert Pujols (STL)
1b: Derek Lee (CHC)
2b: Dan Uggla (FLA)
2b: Orlando Hudson (ARZ)
3b: David Wright (NYM)
3b: Ryan Zimmerman (WAS)
SS: Hanley Ramirez (FLA)
SS: J.J Hardy (MIL)
Of: Eric Byrnes (ARZ)
Of: Adam Dunn (CIN)
Of: Barry Bonds (SF)
Of: Aaron Rowand (PHI)
C: Bengie Molina (SF)
P: Cole Hamels (PHI)
P: Brad Penny (LA)
P: Ben Sheets (MIL)
P: Ian Snell (PIT)
P: John Smoltz (ATL)
P: Brandon Webb (ARZ)
P: John Maine (NYM)
P: Francisco Cordero (MIL)
P: Brian Fuentes (COL)
P: Takashi Saito (LAD)


Just Missed:
1b: Adrian Gonzalez (SD)
2b: Brandon Phillips (CIN) (Picking between Phillips and Hudson was probably one of the most difficult tasks I faced in constructing this all star team. I know Phillips steals more, but I’m way too impressed with Hudson’s gold glove defense and superior OBP)
3b: Chipper Jones (ATL) (Would have made the team if not for so many injuries. If having enough AB’s is that important to you readers, than Aramis Ramirez would be here.)
SS: Edgar Renteria (ATL) (Edgar deserves a ton of credit for the year he is having, the short stop position is just way too deep. It’s unbelievable how Jimmy Rollins’ name hasn’t even been mentioned yet, that’s how deep the position is this year.)
Of: Jason Bay (PIT) (I originally had him as my lone Pirate, but decided that Snell is having too good of a year to let Bay’s reputation unseat him. Hoffman was also originally on the team, but I figured 4 closers is foolish, Rowand is having a better year than Bay, and Snell is having a very worthy year and fulfills the Pirate requirement better than Bay.
Of: Alfonso Soriano (CHC) (It’s nice his average is over .300 now, but it’s sad that his numbers even have him on the Just Missed list. He should be doing better.
Of: Brad Hawpe (COL)
C: Johnny Estrada (MIL)
P: Tom Gorzelanny (PIT) (Him and Snell are forming quite a 1-2 punch for the Pirates rotation…if only they could add 22 different players other than the two of them and Jason Bay.)
P: Aaron Harang (CIN)
P: Oliver Perez (NYM) (What a comeback by this guy)
P: Trevor Hoffman (SD) Such a painful decision, but forcing him onto this team just because of his name would be going against all that I hate about the all star game. Shows how well Saito is doing to make it obvious enough that he’s having a better year than Hoffman.

AL All-Star Team Projection

My All Star Game

Anyone who knows me at all knows that I am a big fan of Major League Baseball’s All Star game, played every year in early July. However, one thing I am not a fan of is the voting. Those who play in big market cities always seem to make much more of a presence in the all star voting even if they are undeserving compared to superior talent in smaller market cities. Another problem with the voting is that fans who don’t have a good knowledge of the game will only vote for the most famous players knowing nothing about their performance that year other than if they have a good past reputation. With that being said, I would like to take some time to propose my own all star team, assuming that those who are most deserving make the team, not considering porous voting methods at all. I’d also like to note however that I will utilize the rule that at least one player from every team has to make the squads.

American League All Star Starters

1B: David Ortiz (BOS): It was tough to pick between Ortiz who has a higher average and on base percentage and Morneau who has more homers and RBI, however Ortiz’s OBP of nearly .450 is way too high to ignore.

2B BJ Upton (TB): The mega Devil Rays prospect is finally emerging into a superstar. With a .320 average, 9 home runs, 31 RBI and 13 steals and OBP of nearly .400, how could one ignore this Devil Rays star in the making.

3B: Alex Rodriguez (NYY): I’m not even going to waste space explaining this one, he is on pace to set the American League home run record.

SS: Derek Jeter (NYY): While this sounds like an easy decision, it was very difficult not to pick Orlando Cabrera. Their batting averages, home run totals and RBI production are nearly identical, however Jeter’s OBP is about 30 points higher and he plays gold glove defense.

Of: Magglio Ordonez (DET): He’s batting .383 with an OBP of .459 and he isn’t winning in the voting right now, anyone still unsure why I hate voting?

Of: Vladimir Guerrero (LAA): Guerrero is having a phenomenal season with a .327 batting average, 13 home runs and 66 RBI up to this point. His RBI totals are only behind Ordonez among all major league outfielders. He has a gun in right field also.

Of: Ichiro Suzuki (SEA): I had a really tough time picking between Ichiro and Sheffield, however Ichiro is batting .356 and has stolen 22 bases in 24 attempts, gotta show some love for the table setters.

C: Jorge Posada (NYY): Victor has a small edge in homers and RBI; however Posada’s .342 batting average and OBP of .400 cannot be ignored.

Starting pitcher: Dan Haren (OAK): What an unbelievable year this man is having. A sparking 1.78 ERA, a WHIP of .901, not to mention a 9-2 record. Sorry Johan, this one is easy.

The Reserves:

1b: Justin Morneau (MIN)
1b: Carlos Pena (TB)
2b: Brian Roberts (BAL)
2b: Placido Polanco (DET)
SS: Orlando Cabrera (LAA)
SS: Carlos Guillen
3b: Mike Lowell (BOS)
3b: Troy Glaus
Of: Gary Sheffield (DET)
Of: Torii Hunter (MIN)
Of: Grady Sizemore (CLE)
Of: Sammy Sosa (TEX)
C: Victor Martinez (CLE)

P: Josh Beckett: (BOS)
P: John Lackey (LAA)
P: C. C Sabathia (CLE)
P: Justin Verlander (DET)
P: Johan Santana (MIN)
P: Gil Meche (KC)
P: Kelvim Escobar (LAA)
P: Bobby Jenks (CHW)
P: J.J Putz (SEA)
P: Jon Papelbon (BOS)

Just Missed List:

1b: Kevin Youkilis (BOS) (Mark Texieira injury prevents him from being on this list)
2b: Dustin Pedroia (BOS)
3b: Casey Blake (CLE) (Yes third base was very weak this year)
SS: Miguel Tejada (BAL)
Of: Alex Rios (TOR)
Of: Manny Ramirez (BOS)
Of: Carl Crawford (TB)
C: Kenji Johjima (SEA)
P: Fausto Carmona (CLE)
P: Jeremy Bonderman (DET)
P: Roy Halladay (TOR)
P: Francisco Rodriguez (LAA) (He really got screwed over by the White Sox having nobody other than Jenks on the team)