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My All-Star Ballot

Jun 27, 2009
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Every year, MLB begins their All-Star game balloting near the end of April, which is far too early. I advocate for voting only after June 1, as you simply cannot elect players to the All-Star game based on less than one month of baseball.

This usually leads to uninformed voting by the baseball fans as it pertains to which players are elected as starters. While most players elected as starters are deserving, that's not always the case. Luckily the players and managers get to choose the pitchers and reserves.

Now that it's June 27, definitely late in the game, here's my rundown of the All-Star ballots and current voting totals:

American League: (vote totals as of June 21)

1st Base
RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Mark Teixeira	Yankees	1,561,292
2.	Kevin Youkilis	Red Sox	1,525,660
3.	Justin Morneau	Twins	1,275,694
4.	Miguel Cabrera	Tigers	944,855
5.	Chris Davis	Rangers	632,895

Interesting numbers overall. Miguel Cabrera should probably be higher up in the vote totals than Kevin Youkilis, but any of these 4 choices are very respectable picks. Seattle's Russell Branyan is having a remarkable year and isn't in the top 5. He's certainly more deserving than Chris Davis. Tampa's Carlos Pena is a home run machine but his BA is too low.

My pick: Mark Teixeira (Yankees). Defense matters too, and Mark is the best defensive 1B in the game.

2nd Base
RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Ian Kinsler	Rangers	1,791,177
2.	Dustin Pedroia	Red Sox	1,732,787
3.	Robinson Cano	Yankees	1,062,863
4.	Aaron Hill	Blue Jays	775,200
5.	Placido Polanco	Tigers	660,693

The small-market playing Aaron Hill should be higher up in this race as well, though Ian Kinsler is certainly a respectable pick. Boston's Dustin Pedroia is not worthy of starting, and I'm not even sure he belongs on the team as a reserve either.

Tampa's Ben Zobrist is not on the list at all, probably because he wasn't on the original ballot. Since he's taken over for the injured-for-the-season Akinori Iwamura, Zobrist is having a phenomenal season and is just as deserving as anyone.

Robinson Cano doesn't deserve the nod this year. He's good, but not an All-Star in 2009. There's ZERO justification for Placido Polanco being in the top 5.

My pick: Ben Zobrist (Tampa Bay) as a write-in. I would also be fine with picking Aaron Hill or Ian Kinsler.

3rd Base
RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Evan Longoria	Rays	2,488,076
2.	Alex Rodriguez	Yankees	1,165,243
3.	Michael Young	Rangers	933,630
4.	Mike Lowell	Red Sox	890,138
5.	Brandon Inge	Tigers	535,226

Not surprisingly, this is a two-man race between A-Rod and Longoria, but the one player who isn't on this list who certainly deserves consideration, is the Angels' Chone Figgins. Figgins is currently 2nd in BA among all AL 3B, has 23 SB and is a fantastic leadoff guy. But Figgins has no power, which is why he'll never make the team as a starter.

So back to reality... A-Rod isn't hitting at a level worthy of election and he missed 6 weeks of the season. For him to be #2 on this list is a complete joke.

My Vote: Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay). I'm not even sure you can justify voting for anyone else above Longoria as a starter. Plenty of other good options for reserves (Figgins, Rolen, Lowell, Young) but Longoria is clearly heads and shoulders the best pick.

Shortstop
RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Derek Jeter	Yankees	2,563,093
2.	Jason Bartlett	Rays	1,148,988
3.	Elvis Andrus	Rangers	844,349
4.	Marco Scutaro	Blue Jays	684,883
5.	Jed Lowrie	Red Sox	459,732

I think this shows how poor the AL depth is at SS this season, especially when you compare the depth at the position in the NL. Derek Jeter is the leader, and it's tough to argue against him this year, although Tampa's Jason Bartlett with just over 200 ABs, is hitting .363 and is outpacing Jeter in all other categories.

Elvis Andrus is really mediocre, while Toronto's Marco Scutaro is being overlooked. Jed Lowrie is clearly a joke pick by the Boston fans.

My Pick: Jason Bartlett (Tampa Bay). Can't ignore the numbers, but I can't say Jeter is a bad option for once.

Catcher
RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Joe Mauer	Twins	2,298,544
2.	Jason Varitek	Red Sox	1,108,054
3.	Jorge Posada	Yankees	947,887
4.	Jarrod Saltalamacchia	Rangers	827,063
5.	Victor Martinez	Indians	754,571

This should really be a two-player race, period. Any other options are complete jokes, especially Jason Varitek. Oh those hilarious Boston fans, always trying to elect goof picks to the game.

There are only two options here. Joe Mauer, and Victor Martinez. There's no rationale for anyone else.

My Pick: Joe Mauer (Minnesota). The premiere catcher in baseball. While both Mauer and Martinez have 14 HRs as of today, Mauer has done it with a lot less ABs and is hitting JUUUUUST a smidge under .400.

RANK	PLAYER NAME	AL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Jason Bay	Red Sox	2,077,504
2.	Ichiro Suzuki	Mariners	1,455,266
3.	Josh Hamilton	Rangers	1,385,212
4.	Torii Hunter	Angels	1,186,097
5.	Carl Crawford	Rays	1,172,241
6.	Jacoby Ellsbury	Red Sox	1,051,270
7.	Johnny Damon	Yankees	1,021,394
8.	Ken Griffey Jr.	Mariners	1,009,584
9.	Nelson Cruz	Rangers	956,294
10.	Adam Jones	Orioles	894,664
11.	J.D. Drew	Red Sox	818,459
12.	Nick Markakis	Orioles	756,316
13.	Curtis Granderson	Tigers	641,102
14.	Grady Sizemore	Indians	626,014
15.	Bobby Abreu	Angels	614,244

Picking outfielders for the All-Star game can sometimes be tricky cause you're not voting for LF, CF, RF. You're voting for the 3 outfielders who have been the best in the game, and sometimes centerfielders aren't an option. That's not the case this year.

First, examining the fan voting so far... Josh Hamilton wasn't exactly having a great year to begin with, has been on the DL twice, and that's where he is currently. Even if he makes it to the team, I don't think he's healthy enough to play.

How Ken Griffey Jr. can be on this list, well, fans are fucking dumb. Granted it's only #8, but Chicago's Jermaine Dye doesn't even make the list?

My picks: Jason Bay (Boston), Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle), Torii Hunter (Los Angeles) Since Hamilton won't play, it looks like my top choices will actually be in line with the fan totals.

Now, to the pitching staffs, which are not chosen by the fans, but I'll list my 12 picks anyways.

Starting Pitchers:

Zack Greinke (Kansas City) - STARTER

Roy Halladay (Toronto)

Edwin Jackson (Detroit)

Kevin Millwood (Texas)
Jered Weaver (Los Angeles)

Felix Hernandez (Seattle)

Relief Pitchers:

Jonathan Papelbon (Boston)

Mariano Rivera (New York)

Joe Nathan (Minnesota)

David Aardsma (Seattle)

George Sherrill (Baltimore)
Brian Fuentes (Los Angeles)

National League: (vote totals as of June 22)

1st Base
RANK PLAYER NAME NL TEAM TOTAL VOTES
1. Albert Pujols Cardinals 2,934,794
2. Ryan Howard Phillies 1,393,546
3. Prince Fielder Brewers 1,155,529
4. Adrian Gonzalez Padres 894,600
5. Lance Berkman Astros 512,879

If you vote for anyone other than Albert Pujols, you should probably be punched in the face until you are dead. But if you MUST vote for someone other than Prince Albert, then the only real other options are Prince Fielder and Adrian Gonzales. Ryan Howard whiffs far too often and doesn't have the BA to warrant the vote.

My Pick: Albert Pujols (St. Louis). DUH!

2nd Base
RANK PLAYER NAME NL TEAM TOTAL VOTES
1. Chase Utley Phillies 2,922,796
2. Orlando Hudson Dodgers 1,082,248
3. Rickie Weeks Brewers 832,870
4. Skip Schumaker Cardinals 729,722
5. Dan Uggla Marlins 475,372
If you vote for anyone other than Chase Utley, you should probably be punched in the face until you are dead. What I'm trying to say is that at 1B and 2B, the NL starters are no-brainers. There's Chase Utley, and then there's everyone else.

However, the one person not making the top 5 who probably should, is Pittsburgh's Freddy Sanchez. especially since Rickie Weeks is out for the year. Skip Schumaker is obviously getting a hometown vote, but he's not really deserving. Dan Uggla has become a feast-or-famine power guy. So his HR totals are up with Utley's, but the rest of his hitting is not.

My pick: Chase Utley (Philadelphia)

3rd Base
RANK	PLAYER NAME	NL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	David Wright	Mets	1,698,366
2.	Ryan Zimmerman	Nationals	1,148,054
3.	Chipper Jones	Braves	1,104,485
4.	Pedro Feliz	Phillies	954,945
5.	Bill Hall	Brewers	842,295

It's tough to pick against David Wright here, as he leads the entire NL in BA, and also leads all 3B in stolen bases. His power numbers are down, his strikeout numbers are up.

Probably the most surprising thing about the current vote tallies for this position is that there are a bunch of players deserving of votes who aren't in the top 5. Casey Blake of the Dodgers, Mark Reynolds of Arizona, Pablo Sandoval of San Francisco. It's probably not a coincidence that all 3 of them are in the NL West, but all 3 are certainly more deserving of a spot than Bill Hall or Pedro Feliz.

My pick: David Wright (New York)

Shortstop
RANK	PLAYER NAME	NL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Hanley Ramirez	Marlins	1,648,482
2.	Jimmy Rollins	Phillies	1,494,466
3.	J.J. Hardy	Brewers	1,051,309
4.	Miguel Tejada	Astros	834,754
5.	Jose Reyes	Mets	754,579

You can't justify voting for Jose Reyes anymore since he's been on the DL for a good portion of the season and no one knows when he's coming back. It definitely won't be in time for the All-Star game.

Nor can you justify voting for Jimmy Rollins here, who is having an abysmal season hitting .211 as of today. The fact that he's getting any votes is truly sad. JJ Hardy is just as bad. Washington's Cristian Guzman should be in the top 5 instead.

This vote really comes down to two players. Hanley Ramirez, and Miguel Tejada.

My Pick: Hanley Ramirez (Florida). The power numbers are overwhelming, although Tejada should certainly make the team as a reserve.

Catcher
RANK	PLAYER NAME	NL TEAM	TOTAL VOTES
1.	Yadier Molina	Cardinals	1,496,285
2.	Brian McCann	Braves	1,180,312
3.	Ivan Rodriguez	Astros	1,002,882
4.	Jason Kendall	Brewers	995,633
5.	Carlos Ruiz	Phillies	980,164

Clearly the weakest position in all of the NL. Yadier Molina is the best defensive catcher of the bunch, but Brian McCann has the bat which Yadier does not. The other Molina brother, Bengie, should certainly be in the top 5. How the hell can anyone vote for Jason Kendall or Carlos Ruiz?

My pick: Brian McCann (Atlanta)

Outfield
RANK PLAYER NAME NL TEAM TOTAL VOTES
1. Raul Ibanez Phillies 2,465,539
2. Ryan Braun Brewers 2,178,144
3. Carlos Beltran Mets 1,779,344
4. Alfonso Soriano Cubs 1,639,664
5. Shane Victorino Phillies 1,371,362
6. Manny Ramirez Dodgers 1,162,507
7. Mike Cameron Brewers 1,140,167
8. Rick Ankiel Cardinals 1,011,527
9. Jayson Werth Phillies 1,008,256
10. Corey Hart Brewers 959,614
11. Ryan Ludwick Cardinals 950,662
12. Adam Dunn Nationals 742,515
13. Matt Kemp Dodgers 673,979
14. Andre Ethier Dodgers 642,983
15. Justin Upton D-backs 594,185

This is interesting. While Carlos Beltran should definitely make the All-Star team, he's not going to be healthy enough to play, as he went on the DL just a week ago.

Raul Ibanez is also on the DL but he'll be back shortly. He's a no-brainer as far as the voting goes. Ryan Braun is an excellent second choice, so now who would the third best option be? Definitely not Alfonso Soriano. If I'm strictly picking a backup CF, either Michael Bourne of the Houston Astros or Shane Victorino of the Philadelphia Phillies would be my choices. Matt Kemp of the Dodgers isn't a bad pick for CF but he does whiff a lot.

However, I'm looking to elect the best 3 outfielders, period. And somehow my third pick isn't even in the top 15, which is completely absurd considering who DID make the list and shouldn't have.

My picks: Raul Ibanez (Philadelphia), Ryan Braun (Milwaukee), Brad Hawpe (Colorado).

And now to the 12 pitching choices, though again, it's not up to the fans.

Starting Pitchers:

Tim Lincecum (San Francisco) - STARTER

Dan Haren (Arizona)

Matt Cain (San Francisco)

Javier Vasquez (Atlanta)

Josh Johnson (Florida)

Yovani Gallardo (Milwaukee)

Relief Pitchers:

Frankie Rodriguez (New York)

Heath Bell (San Diego)

Trevor Hoffman (Milwaukee)

Ryan Franklin (St. Louis)
Jonathan Broxton (Los Angeles)

Francisco Cordero (Cincinnati)

Now, it should be said that a lot can change in a week from now. Players can get injured. Someone may end up being more well-deserving that was overlooked, so I may do another ballot in a week from now if things change drastically.