The Correct All-Star Ballot: National League

To reiterate: every season, All-Star starters for each league are chosen by a fan vote. While it is indeed a great honor for the players and it certainly allows us fans to engage with the game more directly than from the stands, it amounts to a popularity contest that isn’t rooted as much in on-field performance as it should be.  (Ryan Howard is currently 5th among first basemen in the NL despite having not played a game in 2012.)   Things would shake out a lot differently if we eliminated the popularity aspect and honed in on tangible performance.

Below, I give you The Correct All-Star Ballot: the definitive list of who would start at each position, based solely on this year’s performances.

C: As impressive as Yadier Molina’s offensive transformation has been, Carlos Ruiz is hitting .348.  I honestly would not be upset to see Molina get the nod, but Ruiz has been one of the better offensive performers this year for any position and is a majority of the reason the Phillies have not completely fallen off.  Buster Posey’s the fifth best catcher in the National League this year and does not deserve the start.  Plain and simple.  The Correct ballot rewards the phenomenal season of the Phillies’ backstop.

1b:  Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds.  There isn’t a more obvious choice in the game right now.  Votto is on pace to set the single season record in doubles and is putting together a season Babe Ruth would be proud of.  His .484 OBP would be the best mark by a first baseman in the last 18 years.

2b:  Dan Uggla currently leads the fan vote and I suspect it will remain that way.  Fans are big on the Braves’ Popeye lookalike at a position traditionally devoid of power, but despite all the extra spinach, Uggla’s 11 homers only top Hill’s by one, and the disparity in their defensive prowess alone would be enough to give Hill the edge if he weren’t hitting .291 to Uggla’s .244.

Brandon Phillips with his outstanding defense, 10 home runs, and generally swagtastic attitude must also be in the conversation. Right now, the vote goes to Aaron Hill if only for his edge in slugging and OBP.  He’s quietly putting together a great season in Arizona and leads Fangraphs WAR for NL second basemen. It’s a close race though, and if any of these three get hot over the next few weeks, the Correct vote will change but for now it’s Hill.  Props also to Jose Altuve leading second baseman with a .309 avg and 12 steals.  If it weren’t for his disability (he plays for Houston), he’d have a real shot too.  (Side Note: The 814,263 people who voted for Rickie Weeks should all lose their citizenship and be forced to live as illegal aliens in rural Arizona.)

3b: The Mets third baseman “should” be waltzing his way to the All Star game behind his .360 average and .455 OBP.  On the Correct ballot, it’s not even close, but for some reason the fans voting are not as solidly behind Wright.  I personally considered casting my vote for Chipper Jones in his swan song, but with the season Wright is putting together, it has to be him.

SS:  The Correct vote in 2012 is for Jed Lowrie.  I didn’t believe it either.  The knee jerk reaction when filling out this ballot for the next ten years is going to be Troy Tulowitski, much the same way it was Derek Jeter over the last ten.  But get this: in 2012, Lowrie leads NL Shortstops in WAR, home runs, slugging, OBP, and OPS, while he’s third in RBI.

Serious consideration went to Starlin Castro with his .301 average, 16 steals, and 39 RBI (tops among SS), but his totally inept 1.9% walk rate and periodic mental lapses relegate him to backup on this year’s roster. Rafael Furcal currently leads the shortstop race and while that’s not a great travesty, that Mr. Lowrie is not among the top 5 vote getters truly is.  I know he suffers from the same ailment as his double play partner Altuve, but Lowrie is truly crushing the ball.  If the Astros have any real fans left, they should be trying harder to get this guy in the game.  In any event, Houston might be on the right track with those two up the middle.

OF: As much as I dislike the guy and think he should have had to sit out the first 50 games this year, the Correct ballot is about rewarding the numbers and leaving emotions at the door.  Braun would be second to Joey Votto in NL MVP voting if it were held today.  He’s hit 20 homers, swiped 13 bags and has a .319/.399/.612 slash line.  He’s the total package in left field (and to MLB’s great relief is doing exactly what he’s done the last five years.)

The second starting spot is really is not an easy call this year.  There is wealth of deserving performers in the NL outfield.  However, “All-Star” denotes something special, and Melky Cabrera is doing something special.  He looks like Ichiro circa 2002, leading the world in hits and leading outfielders with a .351 average.  The power is nonexistent (just 6 homers) but this is a very impressive first half.  He deserves the nod, but it is close.

It’s really hard to fathom that a guy hitting .340 with 13 homers and 14 steals, while playing Center Field, would be left off the ballot.  the Correct ballot rewards such statistical success, so ‘Cutch rounds out this years outfield as he sets the tone for the next ten years.  I really expect we will be seeing a lot of the speedy outfielder at future All-Star games.

DH:  It’s Carlos Beltran.  Everybody who blew their top about the OF before scrolling down (or is about to blow their top because the NL doesn’t get a DH) needs to relax.  The NL ballot doesn’t have a spot for DH, but this isn’t the NL ballot.  It’s the Correct NL ballot, and since the game is at KC (and it makes the outfield logjam easier for me to sort out), the NL gets a DH in this scenario.  Carlos Beltran is here and not in the outfield simply because he’s old and has bad knees.  But let’s be honest: any team out there would gladly take an old guy with bad knees if he hits 20 homers, has a .308 average, and leads the National League in RBI going into the break.

-Sean Morash

Stat of the Day:  After Ryan Braun, the top three performers in WAR among NL outfielders are Michael Bourn, Martin Prado, and Jason Heyward (all Braves).