2012 All-Star Game: Most Compelling Story Lines to Watch in Kansas City

The Midsummer Classic is almost upon us, and there are plenty of story lines surrounding the 2012 MLB All-Star Game that will take place at Kauffman Stadium, the home of the Kansas City Royals.

The baseball season thus far has been rather eventful when you come to think of it. From the comebacks of Buster Posey and Joe Nathan, to the emergence of Bryce Harper and Mike Trout, there have been plenty of intriguing story lines leading into the All-Star Game this year.

Youth in general is a theme in this year's festivities, as over 66 percent of the players who were named to the team are under the age of 30.

So besides the fact that the All-Star Game now means something (the winning team will win home-field advantage in the World Series, in case you've been living under a rock), here are the most compelling story lines to watch for in Kansas City.

The Comeback Kids

Both Joe Nathan and Buster Posey have had their fair share of career-threatening injuries.

Nathan underwent Tommy John surgery in 2010 and spent most of the 2011 season trying to recover from it. But in his second season back from the infamous elbow surgery Nathan has now returned as one of the league's elite closers, and that was recognized with an All-Star selection.

Similarly, Posey endured a gruesome ankle and leg injury in May of last year that ended his season and put his career in jeopardy. 

Not only did I anticipate Posey to play only around 100 games this year, but I expected his numbers to drop considerably from his breakout 2010 campaign. I think it's safe to say that things haven't gone the way that I expected them to.

Not only has Posey played 76 games this year (missing nine games due to rest), but he is batting a hair under .290 with 10 home runs and 43 RBI. Those are incredible numbers for a catcher who is only a year removed from one of the most devastating injuries that you will see on the diamond.

Both Nathan and Posey deserve to be recognized for their remarkable comebacks.

Saying Farewell to a Legend

Chipper Jones has been playing baseball for the Atlanta Braves for nearly two decades, but this will be his last All-Star game appearance.

Jones has flirted with retirement for a few years now, but he recently decided to hang up the cleats after the 2012 season.

While it might not be as monumental, his farewell wave to the crowd during the introduction ceremony will be somewhat reminiscent of Cal Ripken's goodbye to the country in the All-Star game a while back.

Although Jones has only played in 49 games this year due to injuries, he deserves to be in this game as much as anyone else that will step onto the field at Kauffman Stadium.

Jones is arguably one of the best third baseman of all time and has played all 19 seasons with the team that drafted him. Not many players can say they have played for one team their entire career, let alone for almost 20 years.

Jones should get subbed into the game at some point during the game, and it will be a special moment if he does.

Rookies Taking the League by Storm

Not only is youth the name of the game in this All-Star matchup, but rookies in particular are making the headlines more than some of the seasoned veterans that have been doing this for years.

For the first time ever, there will be five rookies taking part in the Midsummer Classic: Bryce Harper (Nationals), Mike Trout (Angels), Yu Darvish (Rangers), Wade Miley (Diamondbacks) and Ryan Cook (Athletics).

You better get used to these names, because this is certainly not the last time them taking part in the All-Star Game. 

Resurgence of the Knuckleballer

Talk about resurrecting a career.

R.A. Dickey was on the verge of being out of baseball a couple of years ago and desperately needed to refine his game if he hoped to stay in The Show any longer.

Enter the signature Dickey knuckleball: the offering that has emerged as the most famous pitch in all of baseball. 

Not only has Dickey's favorite pitch baffled countless hitters this year, but it has allowed him to become the front-runner to win the Cy Young Award in the NL.

He truly has been the best pitcher in the majors this year, and has provided us with the feel good story that we can all use for inspiration.

Phenoms Making All-Star Debuts

No, all eyes will not be on Josh Hamilton during the All-Star game. Justin Verlander won't be the most talked about player on the field either. And neither will Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun or Clayton Kershaw.

Instead, everyone will be paying attention to Bryce Harper and Mike Trout, the future faces of the sport.

To date, Trout is batting .343 with 12 home runs, 39 RBI and 26 stolen bases in 29 attempts. And he has accomplished this in only 63 games, mind you.

Harper, on the other hand, hasn't been as impressive as Trout up to this point, but that is not an insult by any stretch of the imagination. He's batting .283 with eight home runs and 25 RBI.

Most impressively, Harper is only 19 years old. Most kids are graduating high school at this time, but Harper will be playing in the 2012 MLB All-Star game on national television.

Get familiar with these two players because they will grace the covers of baseball magazines and video games for years to come.

Fan Voting Controversy

The debate of whether or not the fans should be allowed to vote for the starters in the All-Star game has been discussed ever since its inception.

This year was no different, as several extremely deserving players were not voted in at their respective positions. 

The main snub this year was Pablo Sandoval, the third baseman for the Giants, being voted in over David Wright, the third baseman for the New York Mets. Wright has played like an MVP this year and has far superior numbers than Sandoval across the board.

While Sandoval is deserving of being an All-Star if you factor in his missed time due to injury, there is no reason why he should be starting over Wright at third base.

This voting system has now developed into a popularity contest rather than fielding the best and most deserving players possible. The players who start in the All-Star game aren't the best players at every position, but rather the biggest names who play in the biggest sports markets in the country.

That's why three players in the AL starting lineup are from Texas, three are from New York, and the other three are from Boston, Detroit and Toronto.

Likewise in the NL, the San Francisco Giants fan base stuffed the ballots to a fault. While Buster Posey, Melky Cabrera and Sandoval were all deserving of spots on the All-Star roster, there were some other questionable outcomes when the final voting results were released.

Brandon Crawford, a shortstop who has committed 12 errors this season and is batting .243, finished in second place in votes behind Rafael Furcal at shortstop. Brandon Belt, who is batting .255 with only four home runs, also finished in second place behind Joey Votto at first base.

And I saved the best for last. Freddy Sanchez, who hasn't seen a single pitch at the major league level with the Giants this year, finished in fourth place at second base with nearly 2.3 million votes.

If this game is going to determine who gets home-field advantage in the World Series, then something needs to change.

My suggestion? Make sports writers vote for the teams, much like they do for the Hall of Fame. There will inevitably be some bias towards certain players, but it's better than letting the fanbases with the most Internet accessibility determine the outcome.