2013 MLB All-Star Game Roster: Underrated Players Who Will Steal Spotlight

As you'd expect, the 2013 MLB All Star Game features two loaded rosters as the best of the best have gathered in one place for the Midsummer Classic.

MLB on Twitter announced the starting lineups for both sides on Monday, July 15:

After a thrilling Home Run Derby on Monday night, won by Yoenis Cespedes of the Oakland Athletics, Tuesday's All-Star Game will be no less exciting.

Beginning at 8 p.m. ET at Citi Field, the American League and National League will play against one another for the 84th time, with the winning side earning home-field advantage in the World Series.

Here's a full breakdown of both rosters, followed by a closer look at a few underrated players who will shine in the spotlight. 

*Note: Underrated is a relative term, here. All of the players in the game are veritable stars, but some have been hyped far more than others. 

 2013 MLB All-Star Game Roster (via MLB.com)

American League			National League
Starters
Pos.	Player	Team	Pos.	Player	Team
SP	Max Scherzer	Detroit Tigers	SP	Matt Harvey	New York Mets
1B	Chris Davis	Baltimore Orioles	1B	Joey Votto	Cincinnati Reds
2B	Robinson Cano	New York Yankees	2B	Brandon Phillips	Cincinnati Reds
3B	Miguel Cabrera	Detroit Tigers	3B	David Wright	New York Mets
SS	J.J. Hardy	Baltimore Orioles	SS	Troy Tulowitzki	Colorado Rockies
LF	Mike Trout	L.A. Angels	LF	Carlos Gonzalez	Colorado Rockies
CF	Adam Jones	Baltimore Orioles	CF	Bryce Harper	Washington Nationals
RF	Jose Bautista	Toronto Blue Jays	RF	Carlos Beltran	St. Louis Cardinals
DH	David Ortiz	Boston Red Sox	DH	Michael Cuddyer	Colorado Rockies
C	Joe Mauer	Minnesota Twins	C	Yadier Molina	St. Louis Cardinals
Reserves
1B	Prince Fielder	Detroit Tigers	1B	Paul Goldschmidt	Arizona Diamondbacks
2B	Jason Kipnis	Cleveland Indians	1B	Allen Craig	St. Louis Cardinals
2B	Dustin Pedroia	Boston Red Sox	1B	Freddie Freeman	Atlanta Braves
2B	Ben Zobrist	Tampa Bay Rays	2B	Matt Carpenter	St. Louis Cardinals
3B	Manny Machado	Baltimore Orioles	2B	Marco Scutaro	San Francisco Giants
SS	Jhonny Peralta	Detroit Tigers	3B	Pedro Alvarez	Pittsburgh Pirates
OF	Nelson Cruz	Texas Rangers	SS	Everth Cabrera	San Diego Padres
OF	Alex Gordon	Kansas City Royals	SS	Jean Segura	Milwaukee Brewers
OF	Torii Hunter	Detroit Tigers	OF	Domonic Brown	Philadelphia Phillies
DH	Edwin Encarnacion	Toronto Blue Jays	OF	Carlos Gomez	Milwaukee Brewers
C	Jason Castro	Houston Astros	OF	Andrew McCutchen	Pittsburgh Pirates
C	Salvador Perez	Kansas City Royals	C	Buster Posey	San Francisco Giants
LHP	Brett Cecil	Toronto Blue Jays	C	Brian McCann	Atlanta Braves
LHP	Glen Perkins	Minnesota Twins	LHP	Madison Bumgarner	San Francisco Giants
LHP	Chris Sale	Chicago White Sox	LHP	Aroldis Chapman	Cincinnati Reds
RHP	Grant Balfour	Oakland Athletics	LHP	Patrick Corbin	Arizona Diamondbacks
RHP	Clay Buchholz	Boston Red Sox	LHP	Clayton Kershaw	L.A. Dodgers
RHP	Bartolo Colon	Oakland Athletics	LHP	Cliff Lee	Philadelphia Phillies
RHP	Jesse Crain	Chicago White Sox	LHP	Jeff Locke	Pittsburgh Pirates
RHP	Yu Darvish	Texas Rangers	LHP	Travis Wood	Chicago Cubs
RHP	Steve Delabar	Toronto Blue Jays	RHP	Jose Fernandez	Miami Marlins
RHP	Felix Hernandez	Seattle Mariners	RHP	Jason Grilli	Pittsburgh Pirates
RHP	Greg Holland	Kansas City Royals	RHP	Craig Kimbrel	Atlanta Braves
RHP	Hisashi Iwakuma	Seattle Mariners	RHP	Mark Melancon	Pittsburgh Pirates
RHP	Justin Masterson	Cleveland Indians	RHP	Sergio Romo	San Francisco Giants
RHP	Matt Moore	Tampa Bay Rays	RHP	Adam Wainwright	St. Louis Cardinals
RHP	Joe Nathan	Texas Rangers	RHP	Jordan Zimmermann	Washington Nationals
RHP	Mariano Rivera	New York Yankees
RHP	Chris Tillman	Baltimore Orioles
RHP	Justin Verlander	Detroit Tigers

J.J. Hardy, SS, American League

At the age of 30, Hardy is participating in his second career All-Star contest—his first coming back in 2007. During that game, Hardy was a reserve and only took one at-bat, which resulted in a walk.

This year Hardy will be starting at shortstop for the American League and will be batting ninth in the order. Given the amount of firepower in the starting lineup, it's not a surprise that he's been relegated to the back of the order, but it doesn't mean he won't have a big impact on the game.

Though not a particularly strong hitter based on average, Hardy has the power to make a big play with one swing of his bat. With 16 home runs and 52 RBI to his credit thus far in 2013, he's flying under the radar as a legitimate power hitter this year. 

Joe Mauer, C, American League

Buster Posey has stolen the limelight as the most potent offensive catcher in the big leagues the past few years, but it wasn't too long ago that Mauer was garnering such praise.

After missing extensive action and suffering through the most miserable season as a pro in 2011, Mauer has made a brilliant recovery. This season, he's batting .320 with eight home runs and 32 RBI—not numbers that jump out at you, but there's no doubt he can still swing the bat.

This is just a hunch, but I expect Mauer to put on a show on Tuesday night. 

Michael Cuddyer, DH, National League

Cuddyer has been playing in the big leagues for a long time. At the age of 34, he's in his 13th season as a pro, and like a fine wine, he's gotten better with age.

Should he keep up his fine play in 2013, Cuddyer is on pace to have the best statistical season of his career. Batting .330 with 16 home runs and 55 RBI at the break, he has gone under the national radar playing for the Colorado Rockies.

Last night in the Home Run Derby, Cuddyer acquitted himself well, hitting 15 dingers in the first two rounds before being eliminated. 

He's going to be batting eighth for the National League in the All-Star Game, where he will essentially be the team's second cleanup hitter. Look for a big showing from this veteran, who likely knows he doesn't have many more chances of making his mark on history.

Follow me on Twitter @JesseReed78