Friday, June 15, 2012

All-Star Voting Travesty





















I have never given too much weight to the starting members of an All-Star team.  The voting of the fans often leads to the most popular player being selected over the most worthy player, and like Gold Gloves often are, being selected to an All Star game is often a process where previous award winners are grandfathered in, sometimes long after their skills are worthy of recognition.  Just ask Scott Rolen.  I loved the guy when he played for the Cardinals, but how does someone find their way into an All Star starting lineup in a year that he hits .242?  The National League, you can be sure had more qualified hitters at that time.  The MLB All Star game is a fun game, and although we have been told so many times by so many people that it now counts for so much more, I do not believe for a second that the players all truly buy into this.

All this being said, I cannot help but be disappointed in the voting this year.  If I were to create an All Star team based on which players have the coolest baseball sounding names, I think I would vote Buster Posey to play catcher, and I would probably cast a write in vote for him to play every other position on the field too.  I mean really, could there be any better name than Buster for a catcher in the Major Leagues?  And on top of his name, the guy is an amazing player.  He anchors the middle of the San Francisco Giants’ lineup and is in position to drive in as many runs as he can.  As far as young and exciting players go, Posey is in the top dozen in the Major Leagues.  There is no doubt that he is an All Star, and he will be the incumbent All Star in the years to come for a long time if he is able to stay healthy.

He is not even close to the best catcher in the league this year though.  After three years of Yadier Molina being an All Star, he is more deserving this year than ever.  Yadier Molina is a catcher who has always had defensive skills that will one day give him consideration for Hall of Fame voting, and we have been privileged enough to see him mature into offensive skills to match these talents.  This season, Yadier Molina is leading Buster Posey in literally every offensive category other than RBI’s which he trails by only one after hitting deep in the Cardinals order for much of the season compared to the heart of the Giants’ batting order for Posey. 

And while it is not as sexy as the offensive statistics, there is no disputing that Molina is the superior defensive player.  Watching Molina play defense is an experience approaching nirvana.  It has gotten to the point where I find myself wishing people would try to steal every time they get on base just so that I get a chance to watch Molina throw a baseball down to second.  The All Star game is meant to be a game where the top talents in baseball are on display, and there is literally no argument that could be made in support of Buster Posey over Yadier Molina.


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