I've never ben a fan of the "every team must have a representative" rule, so Brian Fuentes and Danys Baez aren't exactly All-Stars in my book.
Aside from that I thought that Morgan Ensberg should have been one of the NL 3B rather than Scott Rolen (stupid fans!). Roy Oswalt (another Astro, what's with them snubbing the Stros?) should definately have been on the pitching staff, and he's definately the guy I'll vote for if I do vote for the "32nd man."
I'm glad to see that all for of my O's that deserved to make it did (Mora, Roberts, Tejada, Ryan), and that hometown boy Mark Teixeira rightfully beat out Tino Martinez. Plus it's nice to see only three Yankees get in there (and no Derek Jeter) ;).
I could have done with Rolen staying home; Harold Reynolds' idea on the Selection Show that there should be a minimum number of games played to qualify as a voted-in starter is a good idea. As a Cards fan, I'm not too disappointed to see Pujols as a reserve (or perhaps starting DH) rather than at 1b; Lee clearly deserves the nod.
Izzy was a surprise.
I JUST WANT THE NL TO WIN FOR ONCE SO WE CAN GET HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE DO YOU HEAR ME MIKE PIAZZA DON'T TIP OFF THE BATTERS THIS YEAR JUST TO SCREW OVER CLEMENS THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I'll agree that Ensberg was snub #1, he has been the best 3B in the NL this year and he didn't get voted in (not a shock), wasn't a sub (sort of a shock), and wasn't even one of the final five you can vote for (a shock). Roy Oswalt was snub #2, dude is 10 - 7, yeah not impressive winning percentage but it's only because the Astros sucked most of the season, with any run support at all the first two months he'd probably have 15 wins, ATLEAST 13 to match Dontrelle. And snub #3 I'd say is Cliff Floyd. Sure he's not having as good a season as Carlos Lee, Bobby Abreu, Andruw Jones, or Miguel Cabrera and I have no problem with the fan vote. But I'm not a fan of the every team should have a player so give me Cliff Floyd over Moises Alou or Luis Gonzalez. And like Ensberg, Floyd should've atleast been on the Final 5 vote.
As for the American League, no big gripes, but as a fan of the A's I'm disappointed that Justin Duschshrer is the A's rep. I mean I know Harden was injured part of the season, but if you're letting other teams get players in who aren't All Stars then why not let someone in who has played like an All Star just hasn't played the whole season. And you could even argue for Chavez as his hitting surge for the past month has actually put him right up there with the other 3B and is the main reason the A's went from a last place team to a team just one game under .500.
Originally posted by geemoneyThe only guys available to be voted as the 32nd man in the AL are position players and in the NL, only pitchers. Is that on purpose?
And who starts on the mound in the NL? As a Marlins fan, its tough not to think Willis should get the start.
I don't know, Chris Carpenter has been pretty damn awesome this year too. He's 12-4 with an ERA of 2.60, going 5-1 with an ERA below 1.00 (including two shutouts) since the start of June.
Then of course there's Roger Clemens, who at the ripe age of 42 may be the best pitcher in baseball, even if his offense and bullpen won't allow him to win any games.
I think it's gotta be Clemens. The man is amazing. Just look at those numbers! Give him a decent team and he's 14-2, if not better. I think maybe Carpenter will get the nod just because LaRussa is the manager, but that's the only way I see it not being Clemens.
Originally posted by BigSteveI've never ben a fan of the "every team must have a representative" rule, so Brian Fuentes and Danys Baez aren't exactly All-Stars in my book.
Now that the league that wins the All-Star game gets home field advantage for its World Series representative, that rule should definitely be eliminated. Put the best players on the field from each league.
(edited by BOSsportsfan34 on 4.7.05 1450) "Since they filmed the football scenes so tightly (quick edits, no wide shots), there's no way to tell where Sandler ranked on the Realistic Athlete Scale (with Reynolds being a 17-out-of-10 and Tim Robbins being a negative-5). My guess is that Sandler was shaky enough that they masked his "abilities" in post-production, a strategy that Bill Parcells should consider with Drew Bledsoe this season"....from Bill Simmons column reviewing the new and original versions of "The Longest Yard".
The Jays got both Halladay and Shea on the team? Sweet! Darkhorse in the second half! (Big Bad starts doing voodoo spell to curse other AL East teams)
They should change the voting so that the fans can vote nine guys to the team, but there's no guarantee that any of them still start.
"You can look the other way once, and it's no big deal, except it makes it easier for you to compromise the next time, and pretty soon that's all your doing; compromising, because that's the way you think things are done. You know those guys I busted? You think they were the bad guys? Because they weren't, they weren't bad guys, they were just like you and me. Except they compromised... Once." -- Jack Bauer
Originally posted by geemoneyThe only guys available to be voted as the 32nd man in the AL are position players and in the NL, only pitchers. Is that on purpose?
And who starts on the mound in the NL? As a Marlins fan, its tough not to think Willis should get the start.
I don't know, Chris Carpenter has been pretty damn awesome this year too. He's 12-4 with an ERA of 2.60, going 5-1 with an ERA below 1.00 (including two shutouts) since the start of June.
Then of course there's Roger Clemens, who at the ripe age of 42 may be the best pitcher in baseball, even if his offense and bullpen won't allow him to win any games.
I think it's gotta be Clemens. The man is amazing. Just look at those numbers! Give him a decent team and he's 14-2, if not better. I think maybe Carpenter will get the nod just because LaRussa is the manager, but that's the only way I see it not being Clemens.
Yes yes Clemens has a very impressive ERA. But how can you leave out Pedro Martinez who has a better record, more strikeouts, less walks, lower WHIP, and lower batting average against then Clemens? If you ask me Pedro has a better resume than Clemens.
Originally posted by QuezzyAs for the American League, no big gripes, but as a fan of the A's I'm disappointed that Justin Duschshrer is the A's rep. I mean I know Harden was injured part of the season, but if you're letting other teams get players in who aren't All Stars then why not let someone in who has played like an All Star just hasn't played the whole season. And you could even argue for Chavez as his hitting surge for the past month has actually put him right up there with the other 3B and is the main reason the A's went from a last place team to a team just one game under .500.
Chavez is not an All-Star. He's had a great month, but he should NOT be getting a lot of credit for the fact that the A's are closing in on .500. The fact that he tanked those first two months is also a huge reason the A's are still not at .500 as it is.
Those young arms on the A's, on the other hand, cannot be given enough credit. I do agree that Harden would be a better rep than Duchscherer (even though he's been pretty good, Harden's been lights out, and I'm partial to starters over relievers).
I still don't know why we need 12 pitchers per team for this game, 6 of which are relievers.
Baseball Prospectus lists Clemens at the top, with a VORP (Value Over Replacement Pitcher) of 49.8. What that means is, Roger Clemens as a pitcher kept 50 runs from scoring more than an average pitcher would do in his place. Willis is second with 46.1, and Oswalt is third with 40.8 (although he has started an extra game).
In the AL, it's Roy Halladay with a VORP of 48.7, and Mark Buehrle is in second with 41.4.
Check out how The-W.Com's WWE Fantasy League is going at smartass.atspace.com. Thanks to SOK for the hosting! Last updated Saturday, July 2
For the Fan Voting Oswalt should be the easy pick from the NL. Some other mentionable replacements would be Hafner, Timlin, Farnsworth, Figgins, Hall, Glaus, Morris, Vizquel.
The AL should take out Crawford for hitting leadoff with only a .310 OBP. Podsednik has tons of steals, but only 44 Runs and 16 RBIs. Even though the Sox have a great record, he should score more runs and knock in at least 25 runs by now. Matsui is a solid pick, not as spectacular as other outfielders, yet will get a big vote from Japan. Hunter is a very good player looking at 30/30. His highlight film defense could put him over the top.
The top AL pick should be Jeter. He is the only choice that plays shortstop, just compare him to the NL's Eckstein/Izturis, 2 guys I wouldn't want on my fantasy team. Jeter is a leadoff hitter with 64 Runs scored, and an OBP near .400, on pace for a career year. Half his errors can be overlooked with Giambi playing at first.
Take off Kenny Rogers, add Travis Hafner. I'm quite surprised he got left off the squad.
Here's a vote for Wickman for comeback player of the year!
(edited by whatever on 5.7.05 0844) "Lita holds a Stone Cold Steve Austin home pregnancy test. What will the Bottom Line say? “Hell Yeah” or “Eh-EH”?" - Raw Satire, 6/15/04 (Apparantly ours said "Hell Yeah", 03/08/05)
God bless the men of 2nd Bn, 127th Inf, 32d "Red Arrow" Brigade, WI Army Nat'l Guard...good luck, and come home soon.
Originally posted by whateverHere's a vote for Wickman for comeback player of the year!
Abrams, WI's very own, I might add.
And kudos to the Brewers' Carlos Lee for making the All-Star game for the first time, in his first season in Milwaukee. Keep up the RBIs, you beautiful power-bat, you...
Cesar Izturis has been placed on the DL and won't be playing at the All-Star Game, which is just fine because his numbers have taken a nose dive over the last month.
The NL shortstop situation is UGLY. Wonder if Ozzie or Barry would come back to play this one.
I don't know, Chris Carpenter has been pretty damn awesome this year too. He's 12-4 with an ERA of 2.60, going 5-1 with an ERA below 1.00 (including two shutouts) since the start of June.
Then of course there's Roger Clemens, who at the ripe age of 42 may be the best pitcher in baseball, even if his offense and bullpen won't allow him to win any games.
I think it's gotta be Clemens. The man is amazing. Just look at those numbers! Give him a decent team and he's 14-2, if not better. I think maybe Carpenter will get the nod just because LaRussa is the manager, but that's the only way I see it not being Clemens..
Well, as a Cards fan, its hard not to go with Capenter, he's been friggin' awesome this year. Wat's up w/ Morris not in the allstar game? 10-1? damn! Pujols will probly be the starter at 1st depending on how bad lee's injured. good, too. there is NO FRIGGIN' WAY LARUSSA'S STARTING CLEMENS!! after last year's shit that cost us the game, theres no way. if he does for some reason, you better get someone throwing in the bullpen at the immediate start of the game, i can already smell a grand slam coming if clemens starts..... I'm shocked about eckstein. but he does always give 110%. Rolen, i'm indecisive, and pretty lame outfield, compared to an outfield a couple yrs. ago (i think a couple) of sosa, bonds, and griffey jr.) but bonds can just burn in hell for all i care. anyway, hope the nl wins so the cards can win the big one.
Originally posted by Omar Padilla The NL shortstop situation is UGLY. Wonder if Ozzie or Barry would come back to play this one.
Hey, OMAR, You got one of the all time greats amongst your ranks in San Francisco.
Not that it really matters, but I am a bit disappointed that Wickman is the only Indian, smack dab in the middle of four other closers. Maybe is payback for the generosity the team received last year, but what about Pronk and Sizemore, both who have been huge the last month.
Originally posted by BigBad The Jays got both Halladay and Shea on the team? Sweet! Darkhorse in the second half! (Big Bad starts doing voodoo spell to curse other AL East teams)
Perhaps...how does Halladay throw on one day's rest? =)
Originally posted by Joseph Ryder I still don't know why we need 12 pitchers per team for this game, 6 of which are relievers.
Because in 2002, the game ended as a tie because the teams ran out of pitchers. Never mind that they could have allowed pitchers to re-enter the game or something like that. They just need to make sure that that doesn't happen again.
As for starter, I'd go with Dontrelle Willis. It comes down to him or Clemens (though Martinez and Carpenter are having great years, too), and I think that the six more wins, five more complete games, and a similar ERA are anough to give Willis the nod. Plus, he's entertaining as hell on and off the mound. Clemens isn't, unless he throws a bat barrell at someone (which is still one of my all-time favorite "WTF?" sports moments).
(edited by BigSteve on 6.7.05 1449) SportsBlog (baltimorenine.blogspot.com)