This year I tried to find a balance between voting for the established stars and the newcomers who are having a stellar first half. With that in mind, here is my National League ballot:
- Catcher - Yadier Molina STL - 31 R, 10 HR, 39 RBI, 7 SB, .318 BA, .875 OPS
- 1st Base - Joey Votto CIN - 47 R, 14 HR, 47 RBI, 4 SB, .359 BA, , 1.137 OPS
- 2nd Base - Brandon Phillips CIN - 39 R, 10 HR, 44 RBI, 2 SB, .283 BA, .775 OPS
- Third Base - David Wright NY - 47 R, 8 HR, 41 RBI, 8 SB, .360 BA, 1.020 OPS
- Shortstop - Jimmy Rollins PHI - 42 R, 7 HR, 24 RBI, 12 SB, .266 BA, .720 OPS
- Outfielder - Michael Bourn ATL, 48 R, 6 HR, 24 RBI, 20 SB, .311 BA, .796 OPS
- Outfielder - Martin Prado ATL, 42 R, 5 HR, 28 RBI, 8 SB, .315 BA, .838 OPS
- Outfielder - Jason Heyward ATL, 39 R, 11 HR, 35 RBI, 10 SB, .278 BA, .861 OPS
- Starting Pitcher - Zack Greinke MIL, 8-2, 2.81 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 9.28 K/9, 4.71 K/BB
The easiest selection on the ballot was Joey Votto at first base. Votto is simply the best hitter in baseball right now and he looks like he just might have one of the best offensive seasons of all time. It was a much tougher call at catcher with Yadier Molina and Carlos Ruiz both having great seasons. In the end, I went with Molina due to his longer history of superior play and his outstanding defense. At second base, I went with Brandon Phillips over Dan Uggla and Aaran Hill largely because of Phillips' Gold Glove defense. Shortstop was a very difficult decision as well, but I went with the veteran Jimmy Rollins over breakout sensation Jed Lowrie and the inconsistent Starlin Castro.
Perhaps most surprisingly (even to me!), I went with three Atlanta Braves in the outfield. In the post-steroid era, it's fitting that all three outfielders have above average defense skills and speed. Sorry, Ryan Braun -- you don't get my vote this year. 'Nuff said.
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