The Rosters have been set for the 2011 Major League Baseball All Star Game which will take place on July 12th from Chase Field in Phoenix Arizona. This will be the 82nd Annual all star game and the first time ever that the DH rule will be used for a game in a national league park. Now in case you haven't seen the rosters yet here are what they look like. First the American League Starters:
Catcher: Alex Avila, Tigers 1st Appearance
1st Base: Adrian Gonzalez, Red Sox 4th Appearance
2nd Base: Robinson Canó Yankees 3rd Appearance
3rd Base: Alex Rodriguez Yankees 14th Appearance
Shortstop: Derek Jeter Yankees 12th Appearance
Outfield: José Bautista Blue Jays 2nd Appearance
Outfield: Curtis Granderson Yankees 2nd Appearance
Outfield: Josh Hamilton Rangers 4th Appearance
DH David Ortiz Red Sox 7th Appearance
Now for the American League Reserves:
Catcher: Russell Martin Yankees 3rd Appearance
Catcher: Matt Wieters Orioles 1st Appearance
1st Base: Miguel Cabrera Tigers 6th Appearance
2nd Base: Howard Kendrick Angels 1st Appearance
3rd Base: Adrián Beltré Rangers 2nd Appearance
Shortstop: Asdrúbal Cabrera Indians 1st Appearance
Outfield: Michael Cuddyer Twins 1st Appearance
Outfield: Jacoby Ellsbury Red Sox 1st Appearance
Outfield: Matt Joyce Rays 1st Appearance
Outfield: Carlos Quentin White Sox 2nd Appearance
DH: Michael Young Rangers 7th Appearance
Finally the Pitchers for the American League:
Josh Beckett Red Sox 3rd Appearance
Aaron Crow Royals 1st Appearance
Gio Gonzalez Athletics 1st Appearance
Félix Hernández Mariners 2nd Appearance
Brandon League Mariners 1st Appearance
Chris Perez Indians 1st Appearance
David Price Rays 2nd Appearance
Mariano Rivera Yankees 12th Appearance
James Shields Rays 1st Appearance
José Valverde Tigers 3rd Appearance
Justin Verlander Tigers 4th Appearance
Jered Weaver Angels 2nd Appearance
C. J. Wilson Rangers 1st Appearance
Before we take a look at the National League Roster, there are a few guys who got snubbed off the AL roster that I feel got screwed over. Catchers for the AL were correctly picked. 1st basemen however could have been a bit better. now don't get me wrong Miguel Cabrera and Adrian Gonzalez are having very good years at 1st base but there are 2 guys who got left off the roster at 1st that should be at this game and that is Mark Teixeira of the Yankees and Paul Konerko of the White Sox. now Teixeira leads baseball in home runs and is in the top ten in RBI's and Konerko is hitting well over 300 and both men are worthy of an all star selection. With 2nd base there are a number of guys from the AL who should get greater consideration such as Ian Kinsler of the Rangers, Dustin Pedroia of the Red Sox, and Arron Hill of the Blue Jays but the knock on those three guys is they are all hitting under 300. 3rd base was correctly pick in the AL.
Shortstop however is room for debate. Asdrúbal Cabrera should be the starting shortstop and Derek Jeter (while he is a hall of famer no doubt) should not be playing in this game. Johnny Peralta of the Tigers should be in this game at shortstop as he is the only one at this position who is hitting above 300. Also Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox should also have gotten consideration because he too has put up better numbers than Jeter. Derek Jeter is proof that voting should be taken out of the fans hands at the all star games because the voting process is just a damn popularity contest in some regards. The only real surprise for the AL outfield was that there was no Ichiro was left off this year. Finally with the DH I think both choices were good but I just feel that Vlad Guerrero is having a better choice starting DH. As for AL pitchers there are a few other surprises with this. CC Sabathia is not going to the game which comes as a shock with the year he's having. He's 12-4 with a 2.90 ERA and 117 K's.
Now for the National League Starters:
Catcher: Brian McCann Braves 6th Appearance
1st Base: Prince Fielder Brewers 3rd Appearance
2nd Base: Rickie Weeks Brewers 1st Appearance
3rd Base: Plácido Polanco Phillies 2nd Appearance
Shortstop: José Reyes Mets 4th Appearance
Outfield: Lance Berkman Cardinals 6th Appearance
Outfield: Ryan Braun Brewers 4th Appearance
Outfield: Matt Kemp Dodgers 1st Appearance
Here are teh Reserves for the National League:
Catcher: Yadier Molina Cardinals 3rd Appearance
1st Base: Gaby Sanchez Marlins 1st Appearance
1st Base: Joey Votto Reds 2nd Appearance
2nd Base: Brandon Phillips Reds 2nd Appearance
3rd Base: Chipper Jones Braves 7th Appearance
Shortstop: Starlin Castro Cubs 1st Appearance
Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki Rockies 2nd Appearance
Outfield: Carlos Beltrán Mets 6th Appearance
Outfield: Jay Bruce Reds 1st Appearance
Outfield: Matt Holliday Cardinals 5th Appearance
Outfield: Hunter Pence Astros 2nd Appearance
Outfield: Justin Upton Diamondbacks 2nd Appearance
Finally here are the National League Pitchers:
Heath Bell Padres 3rd Appearance
Matt Cain Giants 2nd Appearance
Tyler Clippard Nationals 1st Appearance
Roy Halladay Phillies 8th Appearance
Cole Hamels Phillies 2nd Appearance
Joel Hanrahan Pirates 1st Appearance
Jair Jurrjens Braves 1st Appearance
Clayton Kershaw Dodgers 1st Appearance
Cliff Lee Phillies 3rd Appearance
Tim Lincecum Giants 4th Appearance
Jonny Venters Braves 1st Appearance
Ryan Vogelsong Giants 1st Appearance
Brian Wilson Giants 3rd Appearance
Now for my thoughts on the National League Roster. Catchers were correctly chosen for this one. When it comes to 1st Base and the NL the only gripe would be for Ryan Howard of the Phillies getting left off the roster.Howard is hitting .259 which is low compared to the other 1st baseman but he has 18 homeruns and 71 RBI's and he's watching the game instead of playing in it which is total crap. Second base was another good call for the NL. The National League got the script right to be honest. First pitch of the game will be on July 12th at 8PM on FOX
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