All-Star balloting began Monday for the 2017 Mid-Summer Classic and with Terry Francona managing for the AL, the Indians should be looking at having a bit more than the mandatory one player active in the game. Making matters a little bit easier, all nine hitters on the ballot for the Tribe are currently with the team and healthy, something that seems to be rare not just for the Indians, but most teams. Below are their early cases for the fan vote, even if it is just a popularity contest.
C – Yan Gomes
Whether you believe Gomes is the Indians best catcher is irrelevant, because he’s the only one on the ballot. Hitting a light .176, there’s no question that he isn’t the best in the AL although FanGraphs has him as the best defensively. Right now, the top offensive catchers in the AL are Alex Avila, Robinson Chirinos and Evan Gattis, but as luck would have it, none are on the ballot for their team at catcher. Christian Vazquez of Boston, who is having a nice season both offensively and defensively is also not on the ballot, so I guess Brian McCann may be the best option with three home runs and 13 RBI, although he’s nowhere near the offensive output of the three initially listed.
1B – Carlos Santana
Keeping on a similar theme, Santana has had a decent start to the season, but is nowhere near the top of the league and the man who is plays for Houston. If the All-Star game were tomorrow and anyone other than Yulieski Gurriel were the starter at first, it would be a travesty (but they usually are anyway, so it wouldn’t be a big deal). As for the competition, Yonder Alonso of Oakland is having a great start while Justin Smoak of Toronto and Logan Morrison of Tampa deserve consideration. Of course, Miguel Cabrera is also going to get a ton of votes and he’s not far behind statistically despite missing time on the DL.
2B – Jason Kipnis
Continuing on with players who aren’t even near worthy of an All-Star selection, Kipnis just recently rejoined the team and hasn’t really done anything to stand out yet. He could very well be a legit All-Star option in a few months, but it’s not even worth thinking about now. Instead, think about the four AL second basemen who have been ripping the cover off the ball, Jonathan Schoop (BAL), Starlin Castro (NYY), Jose Altuve (HOU) and Jed Lowrie (BOS). You can’t go wrong with any of those options, although like at catcher, the top offensive performer is not on the ballot at second base. This is because he is…
3B – Jose Ramirez
That’s right, the Indians were so sure that Kipnis would be back quickly that they submitted their roster with Ramirez at third rather than second. While Ramirez would be the top hitting second baseman, however, he isn’t the top hitter at third as Miguel Sano somehow has 25 RBI already. Chase Headley of New York and Josh Donaldson of Toronto are also great options, but right now it should be a two man race between Ramirez and Sano with Twin firmly in the lead.
SS – Francisco Lindor
While Lindor and Correa have already battled for the Rookie of the Year, Silver Sluggers and will likely continue to fight for years to come, Correa’s slow start this year puts Lindor in the prime position for All-Star starter. Lindor got to show off on a national stage last year and now everyone in baseball knows his name. No AL short stop has been anywhere near as productive offensively or defensively, let alone when you consider his whole game altogether. He has a great chance of becoming the first Indians player to be voted into the starting lineup for the All-Star game since Juan Gonzalez in 2001.
DH – Edwin Encarnacion
The DH spot is more of a catch all than it used to be, with fewer and fewer full time non-fielders in the league. Encarnacion is one of the remaining dinosaurs, but he hasn’t been hitting as well as many of the others around the AL who play with more than just a bat. Gattis, mentioned as a catcher, is eligible for your vote at DH as is Rays outfielder Corey Dickerson and White Sox 3B, Matt Davidson. The Mariners’ Nelson Cruz may be the best option right now although Matt Holliday is also a good choice as well as the others listed above.
OF – Michael Brantley – Lonnie Chisenhall – Abraham Almonte
Early on in the season, some of the best hitters in baseball have been outfielders including Aaron Judge and Khris Davis who each have 10 home runs. Mitch Haniger, Steven Souza, Jr. and Avasail Garcia all are worthy as well. Chisenhall and Brantley have each played extremely well for the Indians, but you’d have to be a complete homer to vote for them over any of those five players, particularly Judge who came into May slugging .750.
If you complained when Omar Infante was in the running a few years ago, you lost your right to voting an all team ballot. Instead, if you want to vote a heavy Indians hand, go with Ramirez, Lindor and maybe Brantley with a third outfield vote. The Tribe will almost certainly have 4-5 All-Stars this year with Carlos Carrasco, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen all on the fast track right now. Terry Francona will use his manager selections to make sure his guys get in, but it’s up to the fans to make sure the starters are those who are actually worthy of the game, not just the most popular players. Remember, this time it doesn’t count.
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