Mets All Stars

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

Piazza, Beltran and Pedro are going to Detroit next week.

[seawolf17]

When was the last time there were as many Mets as Yankees going to the All-Star game? (And this year, Sheffield might not even belong there, even though he was selected as a reserve.) This is the first time since 1996 that the MFYs have had as few as three All-Stars.

Props to the voters for getting Derrek Lee, Mark Teixeira and Brian Roberts correct.

No props to anybody for leaving Cliff Floyd off the roster. Can we switch him in for Beltran? Do you think anyone will notice?

Let's get out there and make sure Jeter and Matsui don't get voted in as the extra player. Vote Carl Crawford or Scott Podsednik, everybody!

[Theoldmole]

We know in our hearts that Cliffie is an allstar.

[Guest Spacemans Bong]

I'd rather Beltran get the week off to rest the leg and Floyd go in his place.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

If you ever needed a reminder that All-Star teams are about reputation, not results, the Mets' contingent this year will serve nicely. Other than Pedro, the choices are a joke: so far this year Beltran and Piazza are less deserving of a spot than Floyd, and no more deserving than Cameron and Wright, and maybe even Reyes. It doesn't matter much, though I'd want to remind people of the crapshoot effect whenever we discuss All-Star seasons as having any relevance to HOF selection.

[Guest Rotblatt]

Yeah, I agree. There's no way Beltran should be going to the All-Star game, unless, of course, voters are basing it on his amazing second half last season. If that's the case, I suppose it makes sense.

Piazza actually isn't a bad selection for his half season so long as you're only looking at offense. He's tied for the lead in HR by catchers and is also tied for second in OPS (among catchers with over 200 PA). Of course, if you take in defense, it should be LoDuca or Barrett all the way.

I think Rolen's the bigger joke. He's been terrible when he's been bad when he's been able to play, which hasn't been much.

At any rate, I'll be happy seeing our three guys out there, although I hope LaRussa doesn't trot them out there too much . . .

[Theoldmole]

I don't agree that the All-Star balloting should be for best half-season. I think it's a chance for fans to see living legends play. I have no problem with fans voting on that basis.

That works for Piazza, not Beltran.

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

I proposed a system once
http://p079.ezboard.com/fthecranepoolforumfrm21.showMessage?topicID=518.topic

that would make the A-S team reflect the various constituencies (players, managers, fans, sportswriters) and the various methodologies (best half-season, best lifetime, best overall) plus incorporate the other subtleties (each team having one player, etc.), but that just just made too much damned sense for baseball to adopt.
Essentially, it had different groups choosing different groups of All-Stars, turning the voting from a big-bang result into a lot of little results, adding up to one big team.

Never in a million years happen.

OE: added link

[Guest holychicken]

If the allstar game was meaningless, as it has been in the past, I would fully back the "living legend" vvoting. But considering it determines who gets home field advantage, it should be the best current players.

[seawolf17]

If you were a Cardinals fan, and your team was on the road in Game 7 of the 2005 World Series because the AL stole four or five bases against Mike Piazza in the first inning, leading to a bunch of runs, would you be pissed? I suppose you'd be happy that you're in the World Series, but a lot of people would be talking about it, the way we remember Blalock's homer of Gagne last summer.

Gotta get this "this one matters" crap outta here, I agree.

[Guest holychicken]

I don't care which goes, but something has got to give.

[metirish]

My biggest problem is that every team has to be represented, so players like Floyd and Jose Guillen get screwed while the likes of Jason Bay and Alou go , and if Beltran is not worthy this year neither is Scott Rolen, he has missed a lot of games.

Floyd or Guillien are not even on the NL Final Vote Candidates list, that's a shame.

[Frayed Knot]

For all the bitching about the fans' votes, I thought they got it just about right on the AL side. The NL vote was messed up in a couple places but y'know what ... big fuckin deal.
Yeah, you could replace Beltran, Rolen & Piazza with Ensberg, Guillen/Floyd and ... I dunno even know who really deserves the catching spot - but it's not like this is life-and-death stuff here. The only thing sillier than making the home-field dependant on the outcome of this game is worrying about the whole thing to begin with. Since this system has been in place, the WS has been won both times by ... the road team. Home field simply doesn't mean that much in baseball and tying that "edge" to the result of the AS game is just a silly way of artificially injecting "suspense" into a mid-season exhibition game which isn't as popular as it once was. I've said before that the problem stems from the fact that they start the voting so early in the season that fans can't help but vote for players based on rep alone.
It all makes for some barroom/talk radio discussion but frankly I got bigger things to worry about.

I hope Cliff enjoys his 3 days off w/his kids.

[metirish]

Yeah frayed knot it all makes for good radio/internet fodder, I'd like to see the OF spots be voted on by position, that way you don't get two centerfielders playing on the NL side.



National League starters

C: Mike Piazza, Mets

1B: Derrek Lee, Cubs

2B: Jeff Kent, Dodgers

3B: Scott Rolen, Cardinals

SS: David Eckstein, Cardinals

OF: Bobby Abreu, Phillies

Carlos Beltran, Mets

Jim Edmonds, Cardinals



American League starters

C: Jason Varitek, Red Sox

1B: Mark Teixeira, Rangers

2B: Brian Roberts, Orioles

3B: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees

SS: Miguel Tejada, Orioles

OF: Johnny Damon, Red Sox

OF Vladimir Guerrero, Angels

OF Manny Ramirez, Red Sox

DH: David Ortiz, Red Sox

[Frayed Knot]

It's just that when they have something like 64 guys on the two rosters I'm not going to cry too loudly and say we've got to take the fans' vote away because they only get 59 or 60 of them correct.

[metirish]

It was so bloody funny watching the selection show last night on Baseball Tonight and the shock and horror expressed by Karl Ravich(sp) and teh rest of the BT crew that Jeter didn't get voted on the AL team,I thought Ravich was going to cry...

[Guest cooby]

I think it's kinda goofy to assume that these guys will play their butts off for "home field advantage in the WS" when 95% of them know they will not be there.

[Frayed Knot]

Ah yes, "The Face of Baseball" could be missing from the game.

STFU!

[metirish]

But Cooby if you were to listen to Terry Francoma talk about it he thinks "homefield" is vital and was huge for the Sox last year,yeah FK, I couldn't believe they actually called Jeter "the face of baseball", and more than once as well.

[metsmarathon]

if jete's doesn't make it, do ya suppose they'll hafta change the ads?

[metirish]

well damn it I'm doing my bit to make sure Derek dickhead and Matsui don't go, I spent the last 10 minutes voting for Torii Hunter and Trevor Hoffman, and I'l continue to vote all day...

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/index.jsp

[seawolf17]

I don't care if Matsui goes; I don't hate him so much. It really is Anyone But Jeter. I voted Crawford and Oswalt, though.

I was poking around on SoSH this morning, seeing if anyone mentioned any deep-rooted desire to acquire Roberto Hernandez and/or Braden Looper to help their ailing bullpen, and they're talking about voting for Matsui. Together with (hopefully) the Japanese vote, it should be enough to keep Jeter off the team.

Of course, there are always injuries, so you know Jeter's making the team, no matter how anyone votes.

[Guest Rotblatt]

Shouldn't NL fans vote for the worst AL'ers and vice versa?

I mean, in theory, we should want "our" league to win, right?

Not that I'm trying to make a case for Jeter getting in, or anything . . .

Anyway, are we so sure that Francona's going to select Jeter as an injury replacement?

[seawolf17]

Annual All-Star [url=http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/allstar05/news/story?id=2100357]bonus[/url] article.

Disturbing, methinks, that guys like A-Rod and Beltran and Vlad Guerrero have All-Star bonus clauses. You know, guys, you're supposed to make the All-Star team every year. That's why you're already being paid 82 bazillion dollars a year.

[metirish]

Nothing to be really proud of but I voted today over a hundred times for Torii Hunter and Trevor Hoffman for the online vote to make the All-Star team, Hoffamn I would have voted for anyway, the hundred plus votes for Hunter were more about Jeter than anything else.

[Guest Rotblatt]

heh. I kept voting, expecting MLB to tell me that I ran out of votes, but they never did . . . So I stopped somewhere around 20 or 30. I'll do more today.

And it was all about Jeter.

I went for Hunter and Oswalt.

[Guest Edgy DC]

]You know, guys, you're supposed to make the All-Star team every year.

Think of it then as them getting docked when they don't make it.

[Guest ABG]

If Pedro pitches 1-2 innings in the ASG, when might he be pitching after the break?

I ask because I'm going to Friday night's game* and I'd love to not see Ishii every time.




*Thanks again, Soupy.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

Pedro's starting on Sunday; at most he'd pitch one inning in the All-Star Game. It would be better, I think, if he didn't pitch at all.

[metirish]

The Home Run Derby should be a laugh this year,Comerica is a huge park, some of these "sluggers" might not reach the warning track..oh and it's Country V Country this year, no US player yet..

]The CENTURY 21 Home Run Derby (ESPN and ESPN Radio, Monday, July 11, 8 p.m. ET) will have an international flavor this year. Hoping to kick off the countdown to next year's World Baseball Classic, the derby will feature players from different nations represented throughout Major League Baseball. Six out of eight participants have confirmed their spots, according to MLB.com. According to the Web site Tuesday, the roster includes: Atlanta slugger and home run leader Andruw Jones, Philadelphia's Bobby Abreu, Milwaukee's Carlos Lee, Pittsburgh's Jason Bay, Detroit's Ivan Rodriguez and Boston's David Ortiz. The Dominican Republic will be represented by Ortiz; Venezuela by Abreu, Puerto Rico by Rodriguez; Curacao by Jones; Panama by Lee; and Canada by Bay. The only two countries not represented yet are the United States and Japan. One player who won't represent the United States will be Chicago Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee, who declined an invitation because of a sore shoulder, MLB.com reported.