2011 MLB All-Star Game Voting: Once Again Ruined by Yankee Fans

It's almost summer, that magical time of year for vacations, fun in the sun, family reunions, barbecues, baseball and the annual attempt by uneducated Yankee fans to ruin the All-Star Game.

For those of us who love baseball, it has become nearly unbearable to see virtually the entire Yankee roster leading the voting regardless of how bad each player may be playing.  As the team with the biggest market and therefore the biggest fan base, it should not be surprising that there will be a portion of those "fans" who really no nothing about baseball. 

There will always be some who are only fans because they live in New York, or have lived in New York, or want to live in New York, or whatever.  These type of fans often have no idea what kind of season each player is having, they just vote for them because they play for the Yankees.  And one would think that this type of "fan" would be the minority.

But it increasingly appears that a large percentage of Yankee fans fall into this category.  What else would explain the fact that Yankee players lead the voting at nearly every position, despite that fact that there is perhaps one Yankee, or maybe two at best that are even close to performing at an All-Star level.  Let's look at the facts.

Leading the voting at first base is Mark Teixeira.  Teixeira is barely hitting above .250, seventh among American League first basemen and is only sixth among American League first baseman in on-base-percentage.  He again started the season weakly as he seems to do most years.  Were Teixeira on any other team he would be getting little attention from voters.

Again leading the voting at shortstop is Derek Jeter, a perennial All-Star even though his play has certainly not been All-Star caliber for several of his All-Star appearances.  This year is no exception.  Jeter is 10th is batting average among AL shortstops, ninth in OBP, ninth in RBI and ninth in HR.  Hardly an All-Star season, but Yankee fans don't seem to understand that.

Alex Rodriguez leads voting among third basemen in the AL but is not in the top three in average or OBP.  But Rodriguez does have some good stats regarding RBI, HR and hits, in which he is in the Top 3.  However, he doesn't lead the league in any statistical category, so while one might argue that he could perhaps be voted in as a backup, he isn't worthy of being the starter.

Robinson Cano isn't among the leaders at his position, in average or OBP, but he does lead AL second basemen in HR and RBI.  Because of his lead in home runs and RBI, the argument could be made that Cano deserves All-Star votes, and I would agree with that.

Curtis Granderson is also leading voting in the outfield.  He is down the list a ways in areas like batting average and OBP.  But he is doing very well in HR, total bases, hits and RBI.  I would therefore agree that Granderson deserves to be a starter in the All-Star game, at this point.

Russell Marting is getting catcher votes.  He is among leaders in HR and RBI, but is so weak in most other categories that were he not with the Yankees, he wouldn't be getting these votes.  Another situation of a player getting attention, not because his play truly warrants it, but because so many Yankee "fans" don't seem to understand the purpose of the All-Star Game.

Undoubtedly, the least deserving Yankee vote-getter is Jorge Posada.  He is currently sitting at third in the voting for DH.  Posada has been playing so poorly that, were it not for his tenure with the Yanks, he would have, at the very least, been sent down to the minors by now, if not just released altogether.  He is currently hitting an abysmal .169 and yet has received more votes than players like Travis Hafner, who is hitting .345 and having a very solid season.

What it all boils down to is that the All-Star Game is being ruined because so many truly deserving players are being snubbed, due in large part to a lack of baseball knowledge and a lack of respect for baseball by many Yankee fans who don't seem to get it.  Most fans in other cities would be embarrassed to look so foolish in voting for such undeserving players. 

The All-Star Game is supposed to be about recognizing outstanding play.  It would appear these Yankee fans "didn't get the memo."  If All-Star voting is taken out of the hands of fans, Yankee fans will be to blame.  But unless these Yankee fans start to show some intelligence and respect for baseball, there may be no other choice.