ALL-STARS: Fan-Voted Starters

So it's official: the 2010 All-Star Game starters have been announced! Not just the starters, but the reserves as well! Everyone but the FINAL VOTE, on which the fans get to vote until Thursday. I've got some other projects in the fire, so I'll just run down the fan-selected starters, including their first-half swp.

Just to clarify, the first half of the season runs from the beginning of April till the end of June - exactly three months, as the baseball season ends in September (or sometimes the first days of October). This is also, coincidentally, the date All-Star voting ends.

AL STARTERS

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POS	Name	swp	swp/g	Team
C	Joe Mauer	801	12.7	MIN
1B	Justin Morneau	1,246	16.6	MIN
2B	Robinson Cano	1,271	16.5	NYY
SS	Derek Jeter	979	13.1	NYY
3B	Evan Longoria	1,186	15.6	TB
OF	Ichiro Suzuki	951	12.4	SEA
OF	Josh Hamilton	1,327	18.4	TEX
OF	Carl Crawford	1,238	16.7	TB
DH	Vladimir Guerrero	1,280	17.5	TEX

As you can see, six of my nine picks made the team. Re: those who didn't: You know my feeling about Jeter, but at least Elvis Andrus will be on the team via the Player's Ballot. I somehow completely overlooked Josh Hamilton, who leads all All-Stars in swp - he probably would have gotten my vote. Carl Crawford is obviously a deserving candidate.


NL STARTERS

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POS	Name	swp	swp/g	Team
C	Yadier Molina	492	7.1	STL
1B	Albert Pujols	1,288	16.7	STL
2B	Chase Utley	999	13.9	PHI
SS	Hanley Ramirez	1,178	15.5	FLA
3B	David Wright	1,233	16.0	NYM
OF	Ryan Braun	1,155	15.2	MIL
OF	Andre Ethier	939	15.7	LAD
OF	Jason Heyward	912	12.8	ATL

6 for 8 on these, if you count my original votes - 7 for 8 if you count my second round when I substituted Wright for Ryan Zimmerman at third base. (Zimmerman is included as one of the NL's five FINAL VOTE, so he might well get the chance to represent.) Yadier Molina is a mystifying pick - he's known for his prowess in the field (9 runs above average this year), but he's totally anemic with the stick (.616 OPS). A little one-sided for an All-Star, in my opinion. But NL catchers were kind of weak this year, and Molina's a fan favorite from a big market.

Utley, who won't be able to play, as he's recovering from thumb surgery, will be replaced by Martin Prado, the top vote-getter at second base in the fan balloting. Heyward is questionable (also having thumb troubles), but his replacement is yet to be determined.

I'll cover the various levels of reserves in the days to come (player ballots, manager's picks, and FINAL VOTE spots). For now, happy fourth and enjoy the All-Star hype. Oh, yeah, and I'll be there in person to enjoy all the festivities. Just to gush for a quick second.