MLB All-Star Game: Who Deserves to Start and Who Doesn't

Well, the All-Star votes have been counted, and the starters are in place.

Before I start, I just want to acknowledge that I entirely realize that the MLB All-Star Game is basically a popularity contest. I like being able to vote for the players and participate, but this process does lead to some misrepresentation of who the most deserving players are.

This year, I think that the fans did a pretty good job, by and large.

However, not every pick that was made was necessarily the best choice to start.

Therefore, here are my grades (from A to F) for each and every fan-voted starter.

American League Designated Hitter: David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox

This was a relatively obvious pick—Ortiz is batting .301 with 17 home runs and 49 RBIs.

For the sabermetricians, he has the highest Wins above Replacement of all designated hitters according to FanGraphs, at 2.4.

As far as his main statistical competition goes, the alternatives were either Victor Martinez of the Detroit Tigers or Michael Young of the Texas Rangers.

Of these two, I personally think that Young (.312/7/54) would have been the better choice, but Ortiz is still my winner as well as the fans’.

Grade: A

American League Catcher: Alex Avila, Detroit Tigers

Again, this is a very obvious pick—Avila is batting .298 with 10 home runs and 46 RBIs.

There were really no alternatives anywhere near him. The next best choice would have been Matt Wieters of the Baltimore Orioles (.262/7/33), but even he is nowhere near Avila in terms of offensive performance.

Avila has earned a 2.7 WAR, which was the highest among American League catchers, and I'm glad that he received the recognition he deserves.

Grade: A+

American League First Baseman: Adrian Gonzalez, Boston Red Sox

I know that you will probably be sick of me saying this, but this is one more sure thing.

Gonzalez is batting .350 with an on-base percentage of .407. He has hit 16 home runs and has 74 RBIs. He's been a huge part of Boston's success so far this year.

His main competition at this position would have been Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers. Cabrera is reaching base at an amazing .446 percentage to go with a .328 batting average and has 17 home runs, but his RBIs fall a little bit short of those of Gonzalez, who has 56.

Gonzalez is still tops in my book.

Grade: A

American League Second Baseman: Robinson Cano, New York Yankees

I think that this is a good selection, but I also think that it is still a debatable pick.

First of all, Cano has hit .294 with 14 home runs and 54 RBIs—he is having a very good year.

However, I think the controversy comes into play when he is compared to Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia.

Pedroia does look worse on paper—he is batting only .278 with seven home runs and 38 RBIs—however, he beats Cano by a wide margin in terms of plate discipline and on-base percentage.

Pedroia has an on-base percentage of .394. That is 114 points above his batting average. I know that this statistic is not really a very visible one for many voters, but it impressed me.

Also, Pedroia has stolen 16 bases this year, as opposed to only six by Cano.

Finally, Pedroia has the highest WAR for all American League second baseman, while Cano ranks fifth according to FanGraphs.

So, I think that this is a reasonable pick, but I cannot give it as high of a grade as everyone else so far.

Grade: B

American League Third Baseman: Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees

I actually think that there was a better choice at third.

A-Rod is batting .299 with 13 home runs and 52 RBIs.

His main competition at this position comes from Adrian Beltre of the Texas Rangers.

Beltre has more home runs (15) and more RBIs (62) than Rodriguez, but is also batting only .271. However, Beltre is also striking out in only 9.3 percent of his at-bats, as opposed to A-Rod, who strikes out in 22.2 percent of at-bats.

While this is not a huge statistic, it shows that Beltre is putting the ball in play much more, and that will eventually lead to more hits.

However, Rodriguez is much more popular, so it is obvious why he won the vote.

I think that Rodriguez was the second-best choice, so while this pick is not bad, I can't say I agree with it.

Grade: C

American League Shortstop: Derek Jeter, New York Yankees

Let me say before I write this that I am a huge fan of Derek Jeter—he’s a Hall of Famer in my book.

However, there is no way that he should be starting on this team.

I know that he is immensely popular and that many people like him just as I do—that is why he got voted in.

The problem is that he is batting only .260 with two home runs, 20 RBIs, and 39 runs scored.

This might not be so much of a problem if guys like Asdrubal Cabrera of the Cleveland Indians or Jhonny Peralta of the Detroit Tigers weren't having such great years at the same position.

Cabrera—my choice for the starting sport—is batting .291 with 14 home runs, 49 RBIs, 53 runs, and 12 stolen bases.

Peralta—another solid choice—has a .311 average and also has 14 home runs, 48 RBIs, and 39 runs scored.

So, I am sorry that I have to do this, but I don't really have much of a choice:

Grade: F

American League Outfielder: José Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

He was the highest vote-getter of any All-Star in history.

Quite honestly, he has been the man this season.

He is batting .331 with an outrageously high .471 on-base percentage and has 27 home runs, 56 RBIs, and 66 runs scored.

Something that is even more amazing is that he walks at a higher rate than he strikes out.

For a power hitter, that is a very impressive feat, and I really do not have to say much more to justify this selection because most of you probably picked him anyway.

Grade: A+

American League Outfielder: Curtis Granderson, New York Yankees

Bautista obviously had to be the number one choice, but Granderson is having a very good year as well.

Granderson displays a great combination of power and speed, with 22 home runs and 15 stolen bases, and has scored 73 runs and driven in 58 of his own, all while batting .273.

While he may strike out a lot, he is drawing more walks this season, which is a good sign.

All in all, he is a definite starter in my book.

Grade: A

American League Outfielder: Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

Hamilton is not all that different from Derek Jeter in the sense that he would have a lot of votes even if he were having a bad year.

The main difference here is that Hamilton is not having an awful year. In fact, he is having a pretty good year.

Hamilton is batting .295 with 10 home runs and 40 RBIs. He put up those numbers in only 47 games as well, which makes it even more impressive.

I thought about making a case that Kansas City Royals outfielder Alex Gordon should have been starting in this spot, but while Gordon is having a very solid year (.298/10/46), he took 81 games to put up numbers that Hamilton put up in only 47.

I think that the rate that he has been producing makes him definitely deserving of this spot.

So, I think that this is a very good choice to round out the American League starting lineup.

Grade: A

National League Catcher: Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves

Just like for the American League catcher, this is another no-brainer.

McCann has slugged 14 home runs while driving home 47 and hitting at a .314 clip.

His only main competition is hometown favorite Miguel Montero of the Arizona Diamondbacks, but McCann beat him in every category by a substantial margin, except for runs scored.

I think that the National League fans hit this perfectly.

Grade: A

National League First Baseman: Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers

With the absence of Albert Pujols, Fielder is indeed the best option.

He has hit at the high average (for a power hitter) of .296 while driving in 69 runs and sending 21 out of the park.

Fielder has also demonstrated plate discipline with a very high on-base percentage of .416.

Some people might argue that Joey Votto of the Cincinnati Reds should be starting, especially because his WAR is almost equivalent to Fielder's (3.6 for Fielder, 3.5 for Votto).

However, I like this choice because the raw stats show a clear advantage.

Grade: A-

National League Second Baseman: Rickie Weeks, Milwaukee Brewers

Just like Fielder before him, Weeks benefited in this vote due to an injury, this time to Chase Utley of the Philadelphia Phillies.

While I do like this pick, I think that it is less obvious than some of the others.

Weeks is hitting .278 with 15 home runs, 34 RBIs, and 60 runs scored.

The other choice that I am left with is Washington Nationals rookie Danny Espinosa—while he is batting only .243, he also has 15 home runs paired with 48 RBIs and 40 runs scored.

The only reason that I think that these two batters are of similar merit is that Espinosa plays for a weaker hitting team, so it is impressive that his RBI and runs-scored totals rival those of Weeks.

I guess I think that this was the right pick, but it is definitely not as sure of a thing as some of the other choices.

Grade: B

National League Third Baseman: Placido Polanco, Philadelphia Phillies

As seems to be the theme in the National League this season, Polanco probably benefited in this vote due to an injury, in this case to the New York Mets' David Wright.

Polanco has had a bit of a slump lately, which has brought his average down to .277, and has only four home runs and 39 RBIs.

I am not sure if this was the right choice.

The reason I say that is Arizona Diamondback Ryan Roberts.

Roberts' average (.248) is substantially lower than Polanco's, but he has hit 10 home runs and driven in 33. However, where Roberts especially separates himself from Polanco is that he has scored 43 runs (as opposed to Polanco's 34) and stolen 12 bases (to Polanco's three).

They are very different players, and I'm not necessarily sure which one should have had the upper hand.

Roberts was not even on the ballot though, so that might have made the difference.

Grade: C-

National League Shortstop: José Reyes, New York Mets

I really do not have much to say about this one because Reyes has been dominant and is clearly the best choice.

He is batting .354 and has stolen 30 bases and scored 65 runs.

His on-base percentage is .398, so while he isn't drawing that many walks, he is still getting on base about two out of every five times, which is pretty impressive.

Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is also having a solid year with 17 home runs, but Reyes was clearly the best choice here.

Grade: A+

National League Outfielder: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers

Braun could very possibly be a 30-30 man this season.

He has 16 home runs and 19 stolen bases already, and he is still managing to hit .320 with an on-base percentage of .402.

He has already driven in 62 runs and scored 57.

He was the leading vote-getter in the National League, and I feel that he was definitely deserving of that honor.

Yet another choice that I strongly agree with.

Grade: A

National League Outfielder: Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers

While Braun might go 30-30, I definitely think that it's possible for Kemp to go 40-40.

He is at 22 home runs and 22 stolen bases right now, and his .322 batting average and .406 on-base percentage seem solid as well.

A 40-40 finish would require him to remain hot for the rest of the season, but I definitely think it could happen.

Kemp has always been one of my favorite players in Major League Baseball due to his combination of power and speed, so I think that this was a great pick.

Grade: A+

National League Outfielder: Lance Berkman, St. Louis Cardinals

I will admit that I struggled with this decision.

However, as I looked more at Berkman's production, I couldn't argue with the decision of the people.

He is batting .297 with 22 home runs. His .409 on-base percentage is the highest among all everyday outfielders in the National League.

Berkman has driven in 61 runs for the Cardinals, and he only strikes out in 18.5 percent of his at-bats. (For a power hitter, this is a relatively low number.)

The reason that I struggled with this decision was the performance of Andrew McCutchen.

All you sabermetricians will know that McCutchen has the highest WAR for all National League outfielders according to FanGraphs.

Nevertheless, I think I Berkman was a solid pick to round out the National League side of the All-Star game.

Grade: B+