Tuesday, June 26, 2012

American League All Star Ballot

Yesterday, I cast my National League ballot as part of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance's All Star voting. Today, I give you my ballot for the junior circuit:
  • Catcher - Joe Mauer MIN - 34 R, 3 HR, 34 RBI, 3 SB, .323 BA, .859 OPS
  • 1st Base - Paul Konerko CHI - 36 R, 13 HR, 39 RBI, 0 SB, .337 BA, .971 OPS
  • 2nd Base - Robinson Cano NY - 51 R, 17 HR, 39 RBI, 1 SB, .302 BA, .941 OPS
  • Third Base - Mike Moustakas KC - 35 R, 12 HR, 37 RBI, 2 SB, .280 BA, .837 OPS
  • Shortstop - Elvis Andrus TEX - 44 R, 1 HR, 29 RBI, 13 SB, .300 BA, .782 OPS
  • Outfielder - Mike Trout LA, 43 R, 7 HR, 29 RBI, 21 SB, .338 BA, .930 OPS
  • Outfielder - Josh Hamilton TEX, 47 R, 23 HR, 66 RBI, 6 SB, .318 BA, 1.031 OPS
  • Outfielder - Adam Jones BAL, 49 R, 19 HR, 40 RBI, 9 SB, .300 BA, .907 OPS
  • Designated Hitter - Adam Dunn CHI, 42 R, 23 HR, 53 RBI, 0 SB, .212 BA, .880 OPS
  • Starting Pitcher - Justin Verlander DET, 8-4, 2.52 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 8.64 K/9, 4.04 K/BB
Compared to what I would have guessed in the preseason, my AL ballot is full of surprises, including a number of players who have enjoyed breakout years. Mike Moustakas is having a wonderful sophomore season and he earned my vote at third base. I'm always happy to see players from the much-maligned Kansas City Royals organization get their props. In the outfield, I took the youngster Mike Trout with one of my votes even though he doesn't actually appear on the AL ballot. Trout will likely cruise to AL Rookie of the Year honours this season. Adam Jones of the Baltimore Orioles was another one of my selections in the outfield and the 26-year-old slugger is headed for his best season (so far) in his young career.

The other unexpected player on my ballot is Adam Dunn of the Chicago White Sox. After suffering through a miserable 2011 season in which he only hit .159 with 11 home runs, Dunn has bounced back with 23 homers and a .358 on-base percentage going into today's action.

This year's All Star Game is set for Tuesday July 10th in Kansas City.