bdj610's 2010 End of Year MLB All-Star Teams...Every Team Needs a Representative

With the pitching staffs set in our last All-Star Team post, the next step is to make sure that every team gets at least one representative. I believe in the All-Star rule that every team, no matter how well or how poorly they did, has at least one person they could tag as an All-Star, based on his performance on the field. If it means that another person gets snubbed, that's sadly the way it goes. It does not matter how many spots there are on an All-Star team, someone always manages to be left out.

Now the pitching staffs from both sides locked in one representative from eight of the NL teams and eight of the AL teams, pretty much half the teams in either league. So that means in this post, I am going to name six position players in the AL, and eight in the NL.

On the American League side, the Red Sox, Tigers, Royals, Yankees, Athletics, Mariners, Rays, and Rangers, have representatives. These six players will ensure that the AL has all 14 teams represented:

• OF Nick Markakis, Orioles (.297, 12 HR's, 60 RBI's)
• 1B Paul Konerko, White Sox (.312, 39 HR's, 111 RBI's)
• OF Shin-Soo Choo, Indians (.300, 22 HR's, 90 RBI's)
• OF Torii Hunter, Angels (.281, 23 HR's, 90 RBI's)
• C Joe Mauer, Twins (.327, 9 HR's, 75 RBI's)
• OF Jose Bautista, Blue Jays (.260, 54 HR's, 124 RBI's)

Because I have nine outfield spots on each side, I have noticed that many players who wind up being the only person on their team to make the list normally is an outfielder. And that might be the case here with these AL picks as now four of the slots are filled.

In the NL, the Braves, Cubs, Rockies, Marlins, Phillies, Cardinals, Padres, and Giants have representatives. These eight players will ensure that the NL has all 16 teams represented:

• OF Justin Upton, Diamondbacks (.273, 17 HR's, 69 RBI's)
• 1B Joey Votto, Reds (.324, 37 HR's, 113 RBI's)
• OF Hunter Pence, Astros (.282, 25 HR's, 91 RBI's)
• OF Andre Ethier, Dodgers (.292, 23 HR's, 82 RBI's)
• OF Ryan Braun, Brewers (.304, 25 HR's, 103 RBI's)
• 3B David Wright, Mets (.283, 29 HR's, 103 RBI's)
• OF Andrew McCutchen, Pirates (.286, 16 HR's, 56 RBI's)
• 3B Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals (.307, 25 HR's, 85 RBI's)

As mentioned with the AL, it is usually the outfield positions that fill up quickly. And that is certainly the case here as five of the nine spots have been filled. That leaves only four spots to fill, and there are a lot of deserving outfielders that could easily take their place here.

Now before you start to say, "Where's this guy?" or, "Why didn't my guy make the team?" Please keep in mind that I'm not done filling out the team. These 14 guys are only here so that all 30 teams have a player. The best (trust me) is still yet to come.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama