After watching Tuesday night's Major League Baseball All-Star Game, these are the American League players that should have been selected to go to Yankee Stadium for the Midsummer Classic:
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atcher: AJ Pierzynski, Chicago White Sox- Pierzynski is turning in another solid season for the White Sox and has been one of the main reasons the ChiSox have surprised many by being in first place in the AL Central. Pierzynski has done a fabulous job handling the White Sox pitching staff. The White Sox rank 2nd in the AL in ERA (3.56), 1st in quality starts (57), and 3rd in WHIP (1.27). Pierzynski has also been solid at the plate, as he hitting .287 with a .326 on-base percentage, a .430 slugging percentage, 7 home runs, and 35 RBI.
First Base: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers- The 25 year old Cabrera has turned in a very good season so far, although it has been slightly disappointing for a player of his caliber. Cabrera is still hitting .284 with a .349 OBP, a .489 SLG, 16 home runs, and 57 RBIs. However, Cabrera has played very little defense this year, as evidenced by his 12 errors. Although he is turning in a respectable season, the Tigers probably expected much more from Cabrera.
Second Base: Alexei Ramirez, Chicago White Sox- The 26 year old rookie from Cuba has been very impressive in his 69 games with Chicago. Had it not been for the terrific seasons of Boston Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler, Ramirez likely would have been an All-Star. He is hitting .312 with a .322 OBP, a .459 SLG, 7 home runs, and 29 RBI. Ramirez has been a key element in the White Sox surprise run to first place and should make a case for AL Rookie of the Year.
Third Base: Mike Lowell, Boston Red Sox- The 2007 World Series MVP was surprisingly left off of this year's All-Star team despite the facts that Lowell plays Gold Glove-worthy defense and that Lowell has better offensive numbers than Chicago's Joe Crede and Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria (both were All-Stars). Despite missing 17 games due to an injury, Lowell is hitting .297 with a .360 OBP, a .507 SLG, 13 home runs, and 57 RBI. Lowell is one of the biggest reasons that the Red Sox enter the All-Star break ahead of Tampa Bay for first place in the AL East.
Shortstop: Jhonny Peralta, Cleveland Indians- Peralta has never been a player that hits for a high average, yet he has posted a decent .261 mark so far this year. Peralta is a power-hitting middle infielder and his numbers have backed that up this year. Peralta has hit 16 home runs and 25 doubles, which help give him his respectable .487 SLG.
Outfield: Jermaine Dye, Chicago White Sox- Dye arguably has had a better season than 2008 All-Star Grady Sizemore of Cleveland. He is 3rd in the AL with 21 home runs and 4th in SLG with .563 mark. Dye has also posted a respectable .361 OBP and has a .306 batting average. He has also driven in 56 runs and scored 56 for a White Sox offense that is 3rd in the AL in runs scored.
Pitcher: Daisuke Matsuzaka, Boston Red Sox- It was very surprising to see Red
Sox manager Terry Francona leave Dice-K off the All-Star team. Matsuzaka has been very impressive in his second season in the majors. He has been vital to the Red Sox success this season, as he has posted a 10-1 record to go along with his miniscule 2.65 ERA. Dice-K has also struck out 77 batters in 88.1 innings, while allowing just 5 home runs. Matsuzaka is the most worthy All-Star candidate on the AL All-Snub team, and he is turning in a Cy-Young-Award caliber season.
C
atcher: AJ Pierzynski, Chicago White Sox- Pierzynski is turning in another solid season for the White Sox and has been one of the main reasons the ChiSox have surprised many by being in first place in the AL Central. Pierzynski has done a fabulous job handling the White Sox pitching staff. The White Sox rank 2nd in the AL in ERA (3.56), 1st in quality starts (57), and 3rd in WHIP (1.27). Pierzynski has also been solid at the plate, as he hitting .287 with a .326 on-base percentage, a .430 slugging percentage, 7 home runs, and 35 RBI.First Base: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers- The 25 year old Cabrera has turned in a very good season so far, although it has been slightly disappointing for a player of his caliber. Cabrera is still hitting .284 with a .349 OBP, a .489 SLG, 16 home runs, and 57 RBIs. However, Cabrera has played very little defense this year, as evidenced by his 12 errors. Although he is turning in a respectable season, the Tigers probably expected much more from Cabrera.
Second Base: Alexei Ramirez, Chicago White Sox- The 26 year old rookie from Cuba has been very impressive in his 69 games with Chicago. Had it not been for the terrific seasons of Boston Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia and Texas Rangers 2B Ian Kinsler, Ramirez likely would have been an All-Star. He is hitting .312 with a .322 OBP, a .459 SLG, 7 home runs, and 29 RBI. Ramirez has been a key element in the White Sox surprise run to first place and should make a case for AL Rookie of the Year.
Third Base: Mike Lowell, Boston Red Sox- The 2007 World Series MVP was surprisingly left off of this year's All-Star team despite the facts that Lowell plays Gold Glove-worthy defense and that Lowell has better offensive numbers than Chicago's Joe Crede and Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria (both were All-Stars). Despite missing 17 games due to an injury, Lowell is hitting .297 with a .360 OBP, a .507 SLG, 13 home runs, and 57 RBI. Lowell is one of the biggest reasons that the Red Sox enter the All-Star break ahead of Tampa Bay for first place in the AL East.
Shortstop: Jhonny Peralta, Cleveland Indians- Peralta has never been a player that hits for a high average, yet he has posted a decent .261 mark so far this year. Peralta is a power-hitting middle infielder and his numbers have backed that up this year. Peralta has hit 16 home runs and 25 doubles, which help give him his respectable .487 SLG.
Outfield: Jermaine Dye, Chicago White Sox- Dye arguably has had a better season than 2008 All-Star Grady Sizemore of Cleveland. He is 3rd in the AL with 21 home runs and 4th in SLG with .563 mark. Dye has also posted a respectable .361 OBP and has a .306 batting average. He has also driven in 56 runs and scored 56 for a White Sox offense that is 3rd in the AL in runs scored.
Pitcher: Daisuke Matsuzaka, Boston Red Sox- It was very surprising to see Red
Sox manager Terry Francona leave Dice-K off the All-Star team. Matsuzaka has been very impressive in his second season in the majors. He has been vital to the Red Sox success this season, as he has posted a 10-1 record to go along with his miniscule 2.65 ERA. Dice-K has also struck out 77 batters in 88.1 innings, while allowing just 5 home runs. Matsuzaka is the most worthy All-Star candidate on the AL All-Snub team, and he is turning in a Cy-Young-Award caliber season. 
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