You already knew that fans in stadiums around the country and of course online are now voting for their DMBL All-Star selections. But Did You Know who the leading candidates are? Over the next few weeks, DYK's Gregg Jefferies sorts out the contenders from the pretenders for the mid-season classic.

This week: Hanover Division batters.

Infielders

Catcher: Who is going to back up Phoenix's Javy Lopez (.322, .918 OPS, 11 HR, 29 RBI) this year? None of the other catchers have numbers approaching his production, but  somebody has to go on the roster. It will likely come down to a coin flip between Las Vegas's Joe Mauer (.264, .758 OPS, 5 HR, 35 R) and Newark's Gregg Zaun (.265, .734 OPS, 4 HR, 45 R), followed by Hoboken's Damian Miller (.254, .695 OPS, 7 HR, 23 RBI)... Sentimentality is the only reason to consider Honolulu's Jason Kendall (.185, .454 OPS, 7 2B, 12 R), Marietta's Jorge Posada (.218, .640 OPS, 6 HR, 24 RBI) or Westwood's Mike Piazza (.219, .692 OPS, 11 HR, 35 RBI).

First Base: Three of the best hitters in baseball occupy this space on the ballot: Las Vegas's Mark Teixeira (.336, 1.036 OPS, 19 HR, 48 RBI); Newark's Nick Johnson (.358, 1.108 OPS, 16 HR, 54 RBI) and Westwood's Derrek Lee (.328, 1.011 OPS, 21 HR, 59 RBI). It might be tough to get all three on the roster... Given the numbers put up by the big three, it will be tough to even consider Hoboken's Chad Tracy (.265, .720 OPS, 8 HR, 35 RBI); Honolulu's Sean Casey (.273, .683 OPS, 3 HR, 35 RBI); Marietta's Todd Helton (.250, .766 OPS, 8 HR, 33 RBI) or Phoenix's Shea Hillenbrand (.301, .789 OPS, 22 2B, 44 R).

Second Base: There's something for everyone at the keystone in Hanover. A little pop with Hoboken's Mark Ellis (.300, .809 OPS, 8 HR, 54 R); a gap hitter in Phoenix's Mark Grudzielanek (.301, .775 OPS, 15 2B, 38 RBI); or a speed demon in Las Vegas's Ryan Freel (.276, .704 OPS, 20 SB, 36 R)... Honolulu's Ron Belliard (.279, .722 OPS, 19 2B, 28 R), Marietta's Ray Durham (.275, .686 OPS, 13 2B, 30 R) and Westwood's Craig Biggio (.252, .683 OPS, 22 2B, 27 RBI) also are enjoying solid seasons, though maybe a cut below the competition... The only guy the voters shouldn't think about is Newark's Marcus Giles (.220, .650 OPS, 4 SB, 15 R).

Third Base: The hot corner boils down to a two-man race between Newark's Chipper Jones (.317, .997 OPS, 12 HR, 50 RBI) and Las Vegas's Chone Figgins (.349, 841 OPS, 35 SB, 43 R), each having a great -- and very different -- season... Take those two out of the equation and it's an interesting field with Hoboken's Miguel Cabrera (.265, .762 OPS, 20 2B, 55 RBI); Marietta's Morgan Ensberg (.242, .781 OPS, 14 HR, 58 RBI) and Phoenix's Melvin Mora (.280, .801 OPS, 11 HR, 38 RBI) each enjoying solid seasons... Veterans Rich Aurilia (.236, .675 OPS, 7 HR, 23 RBI) of Honolulu and Bill Mueller (.234, .686 OPS, 17 2B, 39 RBI) of Westwood likely won't get many votes.

Shortstop: The most competitive spot on the Hanover ballot. You could make a case for anybody: Hoboken's Omar Vizquel (.250, .643 OPS, 4 SB, 29 R); Honolulu's Miguel Tejada (.266, .716 OPS, 19 2B, 41 R); Las Vegas's Jhonny Peralta (.277, .812 OPS, 13 HR, 52 RBI); Marietta's Derek Jeter (.294, .796 OPS, 7 HR, 41 R); Newark's Carlos Guillen (.334, .786 OPS, 19 2B, 59 R); Phoenix's David Eckstein (.270, .678 OPS, 10 2B, 29 R); or Westwood's Jose Reyes (.287, .689 OPS, 12 SB, 40 R).

Outfielders and Designated Hitters

Outfield: The guy with the best numbers in the Hanover outfield did most of his damage playing in the Morris Division. Las Vegas's Reggie Sanders is hitting a good-but-not-great .254 (.844 OPS) with 5 HR and 14 RBI in 59 AB with Las Vegas; but overall, those numbers soar to .277, .948 OPS, 27 HR and 65 RBI when you combine them with what he put up in 215 AB for the Bushslappers. But if the Hanover voters will accept him as one of their own, he's a lock for one of the three outfield spots on his new division's team.

There's 20 other candidates for the remaining two spots. The favorites are Hoboken's Geoff Jenkins (.286, .817 OPS, 22 2B, 34 RBI); Honolulu's Johnny Damon (.305, .792 OPS, 5 3B, 43 R); Las Vegas's Pat Burrell (.283, .858 OPS, 15 HR, 46 RBI); Marietta's Brian Giles (.327, .885 OPS, 10 HR, 52 R); Newark's Milton Bradley (.296, .831 OPS, 11 HR, 34 RBI); Phoenix's Jeff Conine (.319, .800 OPS, 14 2B, 38 RBI); and Westwood's Mark Kotsay (.297, .783 OPS, 9 HR, 36 R)... It might take a hot week to sway the voters when considering Hoboken's Larry Walker (.277, .791 OPS, 9 HR, 31 RBI); Honolulu's Jermaine Dye (.269, .729 OPS, 6 HR, 25 RBI); Marietta's Gary Sheffield (.244, .757 OPS, 15 HR, 42 RBI); Newark's Bobby Abreu (.274, .819 OPS, 8 HR, 39 R) and Hideki Matsui (.290, .782 OPS, 9 HR, 49 RBI); Phoenix's Ichiro Suzuki (.293, .757 OPS, 9 3B, 45 R) and Luis Matos (.267, .720 OPS, 15 2B, 40 RBI); and Westwood's Andruw Jones (.192, .690 OPS, 20 HR, 49 RBI)... Likely left out this year will be Hoboken's Cliff Floyd (.238, .715 OPS, 9 HR, 31 RBI); Honolulu's Shawn Green (.238, .686 OPS, 7 HR, 18 RBI); Las Vegas's Jonny Gomes (.218, .644 OPS, 8 HR, 21 RBI); Marietta's Victor Diaz (.228, .689 OPS, 8 HR, 25 RBI); and Westwood's Preston Wilson (.165, .496 OPS, 7 HR, 28 R).

Designated Hitter: Two of the league's top RBI men go head-to-head in Las Vegas's Tony Clark (.246, .885 OPS, 26 HR, 75 RBI) and Newark's Manny Ramirez (.262, .885 OPS, 21 HR, 68 RBI). But the voters could also go with Hoboken's Mike Sweeney (.280, .869 OPS, 11 HR, 39 RBI); Honolulu's Jason Giambi (.245, .897 OPS, 17 HR, 41 RBI) or Marietta's Ken Griffey Jr. (.282, .849 OPS, 15 HR, 43 RBI), three popular veterans enjoying terrific seasons. The only two choices that aren't likely to get many votes are Phoenix's Todd Walker (.272, .709 OPS, 19 2B, 43 R) and Westwood's Raul Ibanez (.253, .692 OPS, 19 2B, 30 R), who are merely having OK seasons.

Did You Know that Gregg Jefferies set the record for most DMBL franchises played for when he retired in 1999? The former Columbia Crusader, Arkansas Golden Falcon, Waikiki Key, Jerusalem Rabbi, Honolulu Shark, Carolina Mudcat, Newark Sugar Bear, Hawaii Volcano and Vancouver Iron Fist also has the distinction of having played for all three franchises located in the 50th state. Jefferies hit .283 (.734 OPS) in 2,392 at bats over eight DMBL seasons. Click Here for past articles.