2012 MLB All Star Roster: Analyzing Who Should Earn Final NL and AL Spot

The 2012 MLB All-Star Game rosters were announced July 1. Here’s a list of those making the voting cut in 2012.

American League All-Star Roster

Starting Lineup

C: Mike Napoli, TEX 

1B: Prince Fielder, DET 

2B: Robinson Cano, NYY 

SS: Derek Jeter, NYY 

3B: Adrian Beltre, TEX 

OF: Josh Hamilton, TEX; Curtis Granderson, NYY; Jose Bautista, TOR 

DH: David Ortiz, BOS

Pitchers: Matt Harrison, TEX; Felix Hernandez, SEA; Ryan Cook, OAK; C.J. Wilson, LAA; Chris Sale, CWS; Joe Nathan, TEX; Jered Weaver, LAA; Jim Johnson, BAL; CC Sabathia, NYY; Chris Perez, CLE; Fernando Rodney, TB; David Price, TB

Reserves

C: Matt Wieters, BAL; Joe Mauer, MIN

INF: Asdrubal Cabrera, CLE; Miguel Cabrera, DET; Paul Konerko, CWS; Elvis Andrus, TEX; Ian Kinsler, TEX; Mark Trumbo, LAA

OF: Adam Jones, BAL; Adam Dunn, CWS; Mike Trout, LAA

DH: Billy Butler, KC

Manager: Ron Washington, TEX

Candidates for final online voting: Jonathan Broxton, KC; Yu Darvish, TEX; Ernesto Frieri, LAA; Jason Hammel, BAL; Jake Peavy, CWS

National League All-Star Roster

Starting Lineup

C: Buster Posey, SF

1B: Joey Votto, CIN

2B: Dan Uggla, ATL

SS: Rafael Furcal, STL

3B: Pablo Sandoval, SF

OF: Matt Kemp, LAD; Carlos Beltran, STL; Melky Cabrera, SF

Pitchers: Clayton Kershaw, LAD; Craig Kimbrel, ATL; Aroldis Chapman, CIN; Gio Gonzalez, WAS; Stephen Strasburg, WAS, Cole Hamels, PHI; Jonathan Papelbon, PHI; Wade Miley, ARI; R.A. Dickey, NYM; Lance Lynn, STL; Joel Hanrahan, PIT; Huston Street, SD; Matt Cain, SF

Reserves

C: Carlos Ruiz, PHI; Yadier Molina, STL

INF: Bryan LaHair, CHC; Starlin Castro, CHC; David Wright, NYM; Ian Desmond, WAS; Jose Altuve, HOU

OF: Jay Bruce, CIN; Ryan Braun, MIL; Giancarlo Stanton, FLA; Carlos Gonzalez, COL; Andrew McCutchen, PIT

Manager: Tony La Russa

Candidates for All-Star Game Final Vote: Michael Bourn, ATL; David Freese, STL; Bryce Harper, WAS; Aaron Hill, ARI; Chipper Jones, ATL

As you can see, both the American League and National League rosters are comprised of many predictable, well-known and good choices. Sure, there are some people you would have liked to have seen on the rosters. Not everyone can make the All-Star team, though.

The best you can do is vote for the candidates for the All-Star Game Final Vote to see who will fill out the final roster spots on each team. Who is the best qualified to fill the holes in each squad? Do fans vote from their hearts or to fill in an area of need on their respective league’s roster?

When explaining the original idea behind the final vote for fans, Gregg Klayman, vice president of content development at MLB Advanced Media said (via Joey Nowak of MLB.com here):

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As a kid, I remember always reading the annual articles about the biggest All-Star snubs and wishing there was some way to solve this debate by allowing the most deserving player from each league to grab the final spots in the All-Star Game.

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Klayman has taken a step towards helping fans everywhere right their perceived wrongs in MLB All-Star voting.

The American League will be without pitcher CC Sabathia due to injury. Does this open to the door for Yu Darvish to steal the fan vote and propel him into his first All-Star game?

Let’s take a look at who best fits and who will likely come away with the fan vote and final roster spot for each league.

National League

The National League vote is comprised of several big names and a probable first-ballot Hall of Famer in Chipper Jones. There is a good possibility Jones’s history and strong fan recognition alone may earn him the final roster spot. But does he deserve it?

Jones is in the final season of his career, and no one would mind his presence in the lineup and his name mentioned as one of the best in the game. His statistics this season aren’t as great as what they have been, but he isn’t exactly fading away either. Jones is going out with a fight, and it would be tough to find a reason not to vote for him in his final season.

Remember Cal Ripken’s last hurrah in 2001 when he earned All-Star game MVP honors in his final season?

The other candidates for the National League’s final spot are also deserving. Voting for Jones may be the right thing to do for sentimental reasons, but he hasn’t earned it with his play THIS season.

David Freese, on the other hand, has come on strong after a breakout season in 2011 in which he took home the World Series MVP. His 13 home runs are respectable and 48 RBI are second among third basemen in the NL. His average (.279) and on-base percentage (.330) may not jump off at the page, but he’s still having a terrific season and worthy of contention in this vote.

Michael Bourn is hitting solidly this season for the Atlanta Braves. His on-base percentage and fielding are both solid aspects of his well-rounded game. Atlanta has a strong showing in this year’s game, and I would be very surprised if the fan vote and support shifted from Chipper Jones to Bourn. That’s unfortunate because Bourn is a very talented centerfielder in the NL.

Aaron Hill has history working against him in the final vote. No second baseman or shortstop has come away with the vote in its 10-year existence.

Hill would be another good choice due to the career year he is having. His OPS is currently tied with the highest of his career (2011). He looks like another solid veteran who has finally developed towards the middle of his career. The argument for him is certainly there statistically.

The last NL choice for the final vote is Bryce Harper. Harper is the long shot of the bunch to win the vote. At just 19 years old, Harper is in store for many exciting years ahead of him. He is definitely mature and up to the challenge of the majors, but is he an All-Star yet?

In watching him play, you’d be hard to find a lot not to like. However, the stats just aren’t there yet to justify Harper’s selection to an All-Star game. Add in the fact that he is a lesser known name, and he looks to be on the outside looking in in this year’s final vote.

American League

The American League is much narrower than the National League race for the final vote. All five of the candidates are pitchers. This is due to the previously mentioned absence of the injured CC Sabathia.

But which one of these great pitchers deserves to take the mound at Kauffman Stadium on July 10?

The favorite to win the vote is the Japanese hurler Yu Darvish.

The Texas Rangers won the intriguing Yu Darvish sweepstakes this past offseason. Darvish has not disappointed the fans in Texas. He’s posted a dominating 7-0 record while pitching at the Ballpark at Arlington. His 10 wins are tied for the most in the AL and he is third in strikeouts (106).

The best thing he has going for him is that he is an important pitcher on a successful baseball team that is positioned to make a run at a World Series. He’s a great pitcher and has a lot of hype around him after the offseason spectacle that saw his entrance into the MLB.

Jonathan Broxton has certainly had a strong season as closer for the Kansas City Royals. That is, in his limited opportunities to close wins for the struggling Royals, Broxton has made the most out of them.

He has posted a 2.05 ERA and recorded 20 saves in 23 attempts. Only one of his blown saves has resulted in a Royals defeat. The fact that the AL team already has Cleveland Indians closer Chris Perez on its roster and the smaller market of the Royals makes Broxton’s chances of winning the vote somewhat low.

Jason Hammel of the Baltimore Orioles starting pitching rotation has been spectacular this season. His 8-3 record may seem like a mirage, as the rest of his career he has bordered around .500. However, that doesn’t take away from what the 29-year-old has been able to accomplish this season.

If voters want to see the AL succeed, Hammel would be a suitable replacement for Sabathia. The strong showing by the Orioles so far in 2012 may prompt many to accredit this to the excellent pitching of Hammel. He’s got that going for him heading into the vote.

Ernesto Frieri is another pitcher who is having good success in 2012. The Angels’ closer has more than just success working for him right now. As of June 10, Frieri struck out 30 out the 57 batters he had faced. What’s remarkable, even intriguing, is his delivery to the plate. His delivery is a thing of modern lore in the MLB.

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"I've never seen anything like it. I can't explain it," said veteran reliever Jason Isringhausen, according to ESPN's Mark Saxon. "He hitches it behind his back and it seems like it comes out of his chest. I play catch with him and I can't pick it up until it's halfway to me. Hitters, I believe, look for a release point, and they can't find it off him."

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Can Frieri’s unique delivery and recent success captivate fans propel him to the AL all-star lineup? Stranger things have happened.

Jake Peavy has had an up-and-down season so far in 2012. He’s got one of the deadliest arms in the AL when healthy but has struggled through a back injury this season. Despite that, he’s battled through and done a pretty good job in the process. That deserves some points in my book.

Whoever ends up winning these final votes, there will undoubtedly still be snubs. There are players not even listed in these final votes that you could make strong cases for inclusion into the Midsummer Classic.

The best thing to do is just vote, sit back and enjoy the best baseball has to offer on July 10.

Follow Mike on Twitter @BigHoagowski