My All-Star Ballot

Will get this thing up and running soon. Want to talk about the disconnect between the more conventional fan and the stat-head and what that means for fandom and the game, but for right now, here's what my All-Star ballot looks like:

AL:
CA: Joe Mauer, MIN
1B: Kevin Youkilis, BOS
2B: Dustin Pedroia, BOS
3B: Evan Longoria, TBR
SS: Derek Jeter, NYY
OF: Jason Bay, BOS
OF: Carl Crawford, TBR
OF: Adam Jones, BAL

NL:
CA: Yadier Molina, STL
1B: Albert Pujols, STL
2B: Chase Utley, PHI
3B: Ryan Zimmerman, WSN
SS: Hanley Ramirez, FLA
OF: Ryan Braun, MIL
OF: Raul Ibanez, PHI
OF: Justin Upton, ARI

There are some names on there where there should be absolutely no discussion. Pedroia is the reigning AL MVP and putting up numbers that are so far very similar to last season's. Albert Pujols continues to be, almost head-and-shoulders, the best player in the game. Ibanez is the leading vote- and RBI-getter. Hanley Ramirez hasn't only been making fantasy owners very happy, he is genuinely phenomenal. Ryan Braun is, in my opinion, as obvious an OF selection as Ibanez. Mauer missed a month, sure, but he's made up those numbers in a hurry and then some.

Somehow, the impression has been that Utley's having an off-year, but that's madness. Besides, there's not a whole lot of other options for NL 2B. Schumaker has been effective coming into the infield and is putting up passable keystone numbers, but I've never heard of a "passable" All-Star. Uggla has been inconsistent on what is, settle down everyone, not a very good team. And that's basically it. Utley, however, has been, if quizzically quietly, very good, putting up an OPS+ of 156 bolstered by a fantastic, for a two-bagger, 12 homers. That OPS+ ties him for 7th in the NL and 2nd on the Phillies. His numbers only look "low" because he happens to be on the same team as RBI factories Ibanez and Howard. Ok, he's lost noticeable range from his surgery, but is still a fantastic fielder and appears to be moving back to his pre-surgery, black hole form.

Which brings me to my final, most painful entrant in the "no discussion" category: Derek Jeter. Like a band-aid, I'll do this as quickly as possible: Marco Scutaro is really the only other viable player, and no one has ever said, "Marco Scutaro, All Star" except as a joke. Should Scutaro be genuinely considered? I would say so. But I do think that there is some past cachet to be considered in All-Star voting unlike, say, Gold Glove voting to put a point on it, and Jeter has that, in addition to the numbers, going for him. Add to that the fact that the rest of the AL short-stops on the ballot range from batless gloves, to flat terrible, to injured, and there really is nothing more to say.

But what would an All-Star ballot be without discussion? I pick Kevin Youkilis over Mark Teixiera because, well, I'm a Red Sox fan and when you look at their seasons side-by-side, they're mirror images: Tex struggled initially while Youk torched the ball, now Tex is hitting very well while Youk, not exactly struggling, is in a bit of a slide. Meanwhile, Teixiera's team is in first after a slow start and has an astounding 20 come-from-behind victories. I get it, he's a sexy choice and a damn fine player. But I'm a Sox fan and I have been cornered into voting Jeter. Thanks, every other AL short stop.

Longoria is puttin up MVP numbers while playing outstanding defense. And he's done it all season. No suspensions or anything.

David Wright's numbers look conventionally good, but a little analysis shows that they're fairly superficial whereas Zimmerman's numbers are anything but. Ask any Mets fan what they think of Wright this year and you'll get a good grasp of the situation (not great at home, terrible to lead off the inning -- 216/356/378, low RBI and HR totals, especially in comparison to Zimmerman.)

The real discussion is in voting for two players to be All Stars for the first time in their young, meteoric careers: Adam Jones and Justin Upton. If I granted cachet to Jeter, then I am doing the opposite here. Though always highly touted, these players, one a member of the historic 2005 draft, should snag their first All Star appearances, either by vote or by selection, this season. Jones has exhibited all five of the tools he was touted to posses; don't let the numbers fool you, this guy is blazing fast. Justin Upton may not have as thorough speed as Jones, but what he does have is power, and that to spare. On top of that, he's younger than Jones. It will be interesting to see how the league adjusts to both, and how they respond to those adjustments, but I think these are two players who will be perrenial starters in the Summer Classic.

As for Yadi Molina? Ok, so Martin has better offense and comparable defense, McCann may be an offensive force more than making up for his relative, to Molina, defensive shortcomings (to take nothing, really, away from McCann, but Molina is an outstanding backstop and game caller). I grant all of that. But for all the justifications I've made for my picks, I think I've earned one blatant homer pick.