The Brewers Bar All-Star Ballot

The MLB All-Star Game is in just under a month away, and since the Brewers are currently playing in the stadium that will be hosting the game, I figured it would be a good time to do this.

If you didn’t know already, The Brewers Bar is a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, a group of affiliated blogs that work together to vote on awards like the Baseball Writers of America do.  One of the things we vote on?  The All-Star game.  Below is the All-Star ballot I’m submitting to the BBA, with a few words included after the name.  Feel free to comment with your thoughts.

National League
C – Brian McCann, ATL: He’s hitting less than usual, but at least the OBP is up. Miguel Olivo is hitting better than any other catcher, but his BABIP is flukey and he’s not that good.
1B – Albert Pujols, STL: You could make a very strong case for Joey Votto, but Pujols has been just a bit better in nearly every category.
2B – Brandon Phillips, CIN: Chase Utley is going to run away with the “real” voting, but Phillips is putting together a slightly better season at this point.
3B – Ryan Zimmerman, WAS: As a Brewer fan I’m tempted to vote Casey McGehee, but just can’t after seeing him struggle the past few weeks (although he may be heating back up).  This is just a stacked position in the NL, and I have Zimmerman just ahead of David Wright.
SS – Hanley Ramirez, FLA: The only other guy I’d consider here is Troy Tulowitzki, but Hanley was the easy pick for me.
OF – Andre Ethier, LAD: Hasn’t played in as many games as other candidates due to injury, but had he been playing the whole year he’d be the runaway top candidate.
OF – Colby Rasmus, STL: Rasmus isn’t even in the top 15 in fan votes, but he should be.  He’s currently hitting .293/.399/.582, has the second highest outfielder OPS behind Ethier, and is posting one of the best walk rates among NL outfielders.
OF – Josh Willingham, WAS: I was tempted to take the homer route and slot Ryan Braun into one of these slots, but a month-long slump has him in the middle of the pack when it comes to numbers. Willingham is arguably having the best season of his career, currently carrying a .922 OPS and a Kottaras-like 17.0% BB%.  Another guy not in the Top 15 of fan voting, but he deserves to make the team.
SP – Roy Halladay, PHI: I’d probably guess that Ubaldo Jimenez doesn’t need my help winning the vote, but I think Halladay’s been better this year.  Jimenez is leaving an unsustainable amount of runners on base, while Halladay has been predictably dominant since his shift to the NL.

American League
C – Joe Mauer, MIN: I’ve actually wavered between Mauer and V-Mart on this, as both seem to be very legitimate votes to me. I go with Mauer, probably due to Midwestern Bias.
1B – Justin Morneau, MIN: I love me some Miggy Cabrera, but this wasn’t even close for me.
2B – Robinson Cano, NYY: Even though I’m tempted to do violent things whenever I hear “Don’t ya know, Robby Cano!”
3B – Evan Longoria, TB: I remain jealous of the contract he signed with the Rays. Beltre’s a reasonable vote and should make the team, but Longoria should be the starter.
SS – Derek Jeter, NYY: I feel like I need to take a shower after voting for him, but it’s been a down year for AL SS’s. Best WAR of the candidates I looked at here, he gets the vote.
OF – Alex Rios, CHW: Finally living up to that contract that the Jays were so desperate to get rid of last year.
OF – Carl Crawford, TB: Not quite as good as last year, but still putting together one hell of a walk year.
OF – Shin-Soo Choo, CLE: The Indians have very few bright spots this year, but it’s time Choo starts getting the recognition he deserves.
DH – Vladimir Guerrero, TEX: He’s having quite the rebound year now that he gets to play half his games in Texas, but he’s the best option available on the ballot.
SP – Cliff Lee, SEA: Absolutely ungodly numbers, to the point of being unfair.  The start will probably go to Jon Lester, but Lee’s FIP of 1.92 is just absurdly good.