In waiting for the first half of the season to officially end, you might find that our All-Star rosters are vastly different than a majority of \"teams\" floating around. We object to some of Major League Baseball\'s rules and didn\'t follow them while constructing our rosters.
Every Major League team isn\'t represented under our rules. Each league will feature a 25-man roster, abiding by transitional, non-exhibition rules. That means my team will be comprised of 50 players, not 78 like the roster the league signed off on.
If you consider that each team has 25 active players, 1.04% of \"active\" players are listed on the roster for the 2013 All-Star Game. Reducing our number to 50 means that just 6.7% of \"active\" ballplayers are be honored. The club is much more exclusive, as it should be.
When putting together the rosters, I made sure to include at least 12 pitchers and 12 position players on each team. That means the final spot is open for either a pitcher or hitter. Fans would be able to see their favorite players for longer periods of time under our rules and ultimately few will miss All-Stars like Travis Wood and Jason Castro.
American League
C: Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins
Mauer is hitting .320/.402/.473 with eight home runs and 32 RBI. He leads all AL catchers in WAR (4.0) and since my wife is expecting twin boys he\'s the obligatory Twin on my All-Star team.
1B: Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles
After a historic first half, Davis deserves the starting slot. He is hitting .315/.392/.717 with 37 home runs and 93 RBI. Only Miguel Cabrera (1.132) has a higher OPS than the 27-year-old slugger. He\'s on pace for 62 homers and 157 RBI.
2B: Robinson Cano, New York Yankees
The Yankees are having a \"down\" year, but Cano is still raking as free agency approaches. He leads all second baseman in home runs, RBI, SLG, OPS and WAR. There are a handful of great second baseman in the AL, but Cano is easily the best.
SS: Jhonny Peralta, Detroit Tigers
Jed Lowrie was a contender for this spot, but Peralta has more power and has almost double the WAR.
3B: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers
Searching for his second-straight Triple Crown, Cabrera is hitting .365/.458/.674 with 30 home runs and 95 RBI. You\'d think he would pass Davis in power numbers down the stretch...
OF: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
Trout has followed up his rookie season spectacularly. He leads AL outfielders in AVG, OBP, OPS and WAR and will be a perennial participant in the Midsummer Classic. Yasiel Puig has taken some of his thunder, but Trout has no lasting power.
OF: Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles
Jones, who carried a championship wrestling belt around Monday, is hitting .296/.324/.501 with 19 home runs and 67 RBI.
OF: Raul Ibanez, Seattle Mariners
Regardless of how unlikely it is that Ibanez remains on this pace, he deserves a spot on this roster because of how productive he has been for Seattle. He leads AL outfielders in home runs (24) and SLG (.578).
BN: Manny Machado, Baltimore Orioles (3B)
Machado has been tremendous at the plate and in the field for the Orioles. His WAR (5.0) is higher than all players at third base not named Miguel Cabrera. Barely legal drinking age, he is hitting .310/.337/.470 with 45 RBI.
BN: Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox (2B)
It was going to be either Pedroia or David Ortiz and I opted for the smaller Boston player. He is having a career-year, hitting .316/.396/.436 with six home runs and 56 RBI. He also plays a great second base for the Red Sox, allowing him to post the fifth-best WAR (4.5) in the American League.
BN: Jacoby Ellsbury, Boston Red Sox (OF)
This team needs another outfielder and Ellsbury has quietly been very good for John Farrell in 2013. He is hitting .305/.368/.422 with 33 RBI and 36 stolen bases in 59 games. His ability to remain healthy is just as important as his production.
BN: Josh Donaldson, Oakland Athletics (3B)
Donaldson didn\'t make the actual All-Star roster, which was one of the biggest oversights this year. Only six players have a higher WAR than Donaldson, who is hitting .310/.379/.522 for the Athletics.
BN: Colby Rasmus, Toronto Blue Jays (OF)
Another \"surprise\" All-Star, Rasmus is hitting just .263, but he has a .332 on-base percentage and .816 OPS. He’s an all-or-nothing hitter, with 16 HRs, 48 RBI and 105 strikeouts, but his defense has been great for the Blue Jays. Guys are going to hit balls hard in this type of game, someone has to catch them.
RHP: Yu Darvish, Texas Rangers
Injury aside, Darvish has recorded 157 strikeouts in the first half of the season.
RHP: Max Scherzer, Detroit Tigers
Make fun of the attention his 13-1 record gets if you want, but Scherzer is second only to Darvish in Ks and has been what Detroit needs without Justin Verlander always on his game.
RHP: Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners
He is 10-4 with a 2.53 ERA and 140 strikeouts. Just another season for King Felix.
RHP: Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
The G.O.A.T. in his final All-Star Game and it\'s deserved. Rivera has 30 saves (two blown), a 1.83 ERA and is averaging nearly a strikeout-per-inning.
RHP: Joe Nathan, Texas Rangers
Nathan has blown just one save chance for the Rangers, compiling 30 saves, a 1-0 record, 1.36 ERA and more than a strikeout-per-inning.
HP: Greg Holland, Kansas City Royals
Holland gets the nod over Glen Perkins as the third reliever/closer. Holland has a lower ERA (1.80 to 1.82) and more strikeouts (60 to 47) while recording 22 saves for the Royals.
RHP: Hiroki Kuroda, New York Yankees
Kuroda was on Jim Leyland\'s short list as a replacement and he should have made the roster. His 2.65 ERA is second only to Hernandez in the AL.
LHP: Chris Sale, Chicago White Sox
Sale has a 6-8 record with the White Sox, but he has been great on the mound. He has 131 strikeouts in 120 innings, a 2.85 ERA and 1.01 WHIP.
LHP: Derek Holland, Texas Rangers
Averaging nearly a strikeout per inning, Holland has a 3.08 ERA and the second-highest WAR (2.9) among AL left-handers this season.
LHP: Matt Moore, Tampa Bay Rays
Moore is the third southpaw on the AL roster and his K/9 (9.06) is sparkling. He\'s also 13-3 with a 3.44 ERA as 24-years-old.
RHP: Bartolo Colon, Oakland Athletics
Colon is still getting hitters out at 40, pitching to a .270 ERA and 13-3 mark with Oakland.
RHP: Hisashi Iwakuma, Seattle Mariners
He ranks among the AL leaders in Ks and has provided Seattle with a nice complement to Hernandez. He is 8-4 with a 3.02 ERA in 20 starts.
National League
C: Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
Molina just barely edged out Buster Posey for the starting slot, with the \"tie\" going to him because the Cardinals were more than 14 games better than the Giants in the first half. Molina is hitting .341/.386/.489 with 49 RBI in 323 at-bats.
1B: Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks
You could make a strong case for Joey Votto, but Goldschmidt has the edge in slugging (.557 to .506), WAR (4.8 to 4.2) and both home runs and RBI. Votto has a batter eye (.434-.395 advantage in on-base percentage).
2B: Matt Carpenter, St. Louis Cardinals
Brandon Phillips and Marco Scutaro might have bigger names nationally, but Carpenter is far-and-away the best second baseman in the NL. He is hitting .321/.394/.497 with nine homers and 45 RBI. Dustin Pedroia is the only player at the position with a higher OBP.
SS: Jean Segura, Milwaukee Brewers
Troy Tulowitzki has incredible numbers, but Segura has logged almost 150 more at-bats for the Brewers than Tulowitzki has for the Rockies. The 23-year-old leads qualified shortstops in AVG, SLG, OPS and WAR.
3B: David Wright, New York Mets
Luckily for Major League Baseball, Wright had a tremendous first half. He leads NL third baseman in OPS and WAR. The hometown star is hitting .304/.396/.507 with 13 home runs and 44 RBI despite relatively little offensive help around him.
OF: Carlos Gomez, Milwaukee Brewers
Gomez is having a great season both at the plate and in the field. He has a .870 OPS, 14 home runs and 45 RBIs. Defensively, he has been vital to the Brewers – contributing to the highest WAR (5.7) in the game.
OF: Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh Pirates
McCutchen deserves not only a spot on the All-Star team, but also to be there when the Pirates officially transfer from loser to winner. Yet another well above-average season has put Pittsburgh in place to make that change.
OF: Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies
Gonzalez brings the power to the NL outfield with a slugging percentage (.610) second to only Puig. He has more than 200 at-bats on Puig, who also has the edge on Gonzalez in OPS.
BN: Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants (C)
Posey easily could have started for the National League, but as discussed above the nod was given to Yadier Molina. Posey leads all Major League catchers in WAR (4.2) and has the highest OPS (.931) by almost sixty points.
BN: Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds (1B)
Votto will provide quite the punch off the bench. He is hitting .318/.434/.506 with 15 home runs and 43 RBI in 352 at-bats. He is tied for second among ML first baseman in WAR (4.2).
BN: Domonic Brown, Philadelphia Phillies (OF)
Brown\'s 23 home runs are second only to Gonzalez in the NL. His numbers are even more impressive when you consider that he hit .233/.309/.372 with just three home runs in April.
BN: Starling Marte, Pittsburgh Pirates (OF)
The 24-year-old is having a breakout season for Pittsburgh, hitting .291/.342/.462 with nine home runs and 28 RBI. Marte has also stolen 28 bases and played good defense.
BN: Everth Cabrera, San Diego (SS)
This squad needs a middle infielder and Cabrera fits the bill. He has logged more innings than an option like Troy Tulowitzki and Chase Utley and provides speed to Bruce Bochy. Cabrera is hitting .291/.373/.396 with 25 RBI and 34 stolen bases.
RHP: Matt Harvey, New York Mets
I\'m not sure I\'d start him over Clayton Kershaw, but Harvey is incredibly deserving of an All-Star spot. He has a 2.35 ERA in 19 starts for the Mets and leads the NL in strikeouts with 147 Ks.
LHP: Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers haven’t dominated, but Kershaw has been dominant. The lefty is 8-6 with a 1.98 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 145 innings.
RHP: Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals
Wainwright is tied for the NL lead in wins and his 2.45 ERA shows that he’s been more than just lucky.
LHP: Cliff Lee, Philadelphia Phillies
Lee is the ultimate businessman. He is 10-3 with a 2.86 ERA for the Phillies, who are playing .500 baseball.
LHP: Madison Bumgarner, San Francisco Giants
The NL has greater depth in terms of left-handed pitching and Bumgarner is at times the best. He is 10-5 with a 3.02 ERA and 122 strikeouts.
RHP: Jason Grilli, Pittsburgh Pirates
Grilli leads the NL in saves (29) and has blown just one opportunity. He also has a sparkling 1.99 ERA and 63 Ks in fewer than 41 innings.
RHP: Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta Braves
Kimbrel has three blown saves (29 chances), but has the lowest ERA (1.53) among full-time NL closers.
LHP: Aroldis Chapman, Cincinnati Reds
Chapman has struck out 64 batters in less than 39 innings. He is averaging 14.9 strikeouts per nine innings.
LHP: Jeff Locke, Pittsburgh Pirates
Locke is one of many talented young pitchers on the rise. He is 8-2 with a 2.15 ERA for Pittsburgh. He doesn\'t strike a ton of batters out, but he still gets them out.
LHP: Patrick Corbin, Arizona Diamondbacks
Corbin has been a standout for the Diamondbacks in 2013, going 11-1 with a 2.35 ERA and 109 Ks in 130 innings. His 1.00 WHIP showcases his ability to keep hitters off the bases.
RHP: Jordan Zimmermann, Washington Nationals
Zimmermann\'s neck will keep him out of the All-Star Game, but you cannot discount what he accomplished in the first half. He went 12-4 with a 2.58 ERA for the Nationals in 19 starts.
RHP: Jose Fernandez, Miami Marlins
Fernandez hasn\'t gone long in his starts, but he has made 18 of them for the Marlins. He is just 5-5, but has a 2.75 ERA and 103 Ks in just over 104 innings. First of many All-Star invites for the soon-to-be 21-year old?