All-Star Special - June 10, 2006

The Midsummer Classic!

The 15th annual Diamond Mind Baseball All-Star Game will be played on Monday at the Shark Tank in Honolulu. The visiting Morris Division won last year's contest for a second straight year. Before their recent two-year losing streak, the Hanover Division had won four straight contests. The Morris now leads in the overall standings, seven games to five. (Although this is the 15th annual game, only 12 intradivisional contests have been played; the first two years pitted the DMBL All-Stars against the MLB All-Stars, and the 1995 game was cancelled due to the strike.)

The skippers from the World Series teams will helm their respective teams, and for the fourth straight year it's the same two guys: Newark's Don Mattingly and Arkansas's George Brett. Following tradition, each All-Star manager selected his two assistant coaches from last year's other playoff teams: Mattingly will be joined, for the third straight year, by Honolulu skipper Gary Carter and Marietta (formerly Stanhope) manager Graig Nettles. Brett will be aided by Philly's Steve "Bye-Bye" Balboni and Vancouver's Darren "Dutch" Daulton. The honorary team captains are Troy Percival for the Hanover Division, a three-time Hanover All-Star with Phoenix ('02-'04) as well as twice with Norfolk ('96-'97); and Edgar Martinez, a Morris Division All-Star seven times ('91-'93, '96, '98-'99, '01) with Vancouver. The ceremonial first pitch was to have been thrown out by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, but a last-minute replacement had to be found. Luckily, Abraham Nunez -- released four times already this year -- was available, so he was given the nod. But as befitting Nunez's season, he was cut and replaced with Baby Brangelina. The National Anthem was sung by George Clooney, though most fans in attendance thought it was Taylor Hicks.

Every team has at least one player selected to this year's All-Star squad. The Las Vegas Rat Pack had the most of any team, with eight selections, followed by the Vancouver Ironfist with six. The Carolina Mudcats and Newark Sugar Bears were tied for third with five players each (including an injured player for Newark who made the roster but will not play). Next came the Philadelphia Endzone Animals with four, followed by the Arkansas Golden Falcons, Hillsborough Hired Hitmen, Hoboken Cutters, Honolulu Sharks and Marietta Mighty Men, all with three players each.

Bringing up the rear, the D.C. Bushslappers, Phoenix Dragons, South Boston Gang and Westwood Deductions each have two, including a player for Westwood who made the roster as a replacement player for the injured Sugar Bear.

Prince Albert

No player was a unanimous selection this year, but the player who tied for the most votes received also is tied for the longest active streak of consecutive All-Star Game performances: Albert Pujols, who has been here every year of his stellar five-year DMBL career. The Philly slugger is hitting .321 (.972 OPS) with 17 2B, 23 HR, 65 R and 67 RBI and is among the Morris Division leaders in almost every offensive category. He tied for the most votes received by a batter with Vancouver's Victor Martinez, last year's Pat Listach Rookie of the Year back for his second All-Star appearance. The switch-hitting catcher has obviously never heard of the sophomore slump, hitting .344 (.880 OPS) with 20 2B, 9 HR, 53 R and 57 RBI, and leads the Morris Division (and all catchers) in batting average, on-base percentage (.389) and hits (110). Pujols and Martinez were the selection on more than three-quarters of the ballots cast.

The Hanover voters gave the most ballots to someone old and someone new. The first-timer who tied for the most votes was Hoboken second baseman Mark Ellis (.286, .776 OPS, 13 2B, 5 3B, 8 HR, 42 RBI). Ellis, 29, deserves the honor but it was still surprising to see him win in a landslide given how close his numbers are to Phoenix's Mark Grudzielanek (.291, .757 OPS, 15 2B, 4 3B, 6 HR, 42 RBI) -- who didn't receive a single vote! Ellis is one of 26 first-time All-Stars this year, one less than the total from last year, and 12 players are here for just the second time, while 11 have been here 5 or more times. One of the few players in the middle is Marietta's Brian Giles, making his fourth All-Star Game appearance (but his first since 2003). Giles is hitting .318 (.875 OPS) with 14 2B, 11 HR, 56 R and 37 RBI, and ranks among the Top 10 in the league in batting average, OBP (.392), hits (106) and runs created (65.7).

Ellis may have to do some referee'ing as the rest of the infield is split between Hanover rivals Newark and Las Vegas. The two first basemen are Newark's Nick Johnson (.358, 1.108 OPS, 16 HR, 54 RBI) and Las Vegas's Mark Teixeira (.346, 1.079 OPS, 24 HR, 57 RBI); the two third basemen are Newark's Chipper Jones (.320, .990 OPS, 23 2B, 53 R) and Las Vegas's Chone Figgins (.351, 47 R, 42 SB); and the two shortstops are Newark's Carlos Guillen (.329, 22 2B, 66 R) and Las Vegas's Jhonny Peralta (.275, 15 HR, 58 RBI). Newark should have had more players on the field to start the game, with only Jones coming off the bench, but Johnson is out with an injury so Teixeira will get the nod at first base. Jones, a six-time All-Star and the MVP of the 2001 game, surprisingly hasn't made the team since 2002, the longest drought of any player who made it this year... It's the second appearance for Guillen and Johnson, and the first for Figgins, Peralta and Teixeira... Westwood's Derrek Lee (.313, .967 OPS, 21 HR, 61 RBI), another All-Star first-timer, replaced Johnson on the roster... The Hanover catchers will be Phoenix's Javy Lopez (.304, 11 HR, 31 RBI), making his third straight All-Star appearance (and fifth overall), and Las Vegas rookie Joe Mauer (.255, 15 2B, 37 R).

Splitting the Morris catching duties with Martinez will be Philly catcher Paul Lo Duca (.252, .634 OPS, 3 HR, 25 RBI). The Duke's numbers aren't great this year, but the voters may have been rewarding the 34-year-old catcher for his work ethic, clubhouse presence and quietly solid career (.273 batting average in 1481 AB)... Joining Pujols and Lo Duca in the Morris infield is Philly teammate 2B Brian Roberts (.317, 26 2B, 44 R, 7 SB), here for the first time. Joining the Philly brigade are Hillsborough 3B Alex Rodriguez (.275, 21 HR, 62 RBI), an eight-time All-Star, and Vancouver SS Michael Young (.306, 20 2B, 67 R), here for the second straight year. Coming off the bench will be first-time All-Stars David Wright (.279, 23 2B, 16 HR, 53 RBI) of Arkansas and Jimmy Rollins (.290, 26 2B, 5 3B, 43 R).

The top vote getter in the Morris outfield was Hillsborough's Adam Dunn (.275, .951 OPS, 22 HR, 66 RBI), here for the second time after making his All-Star debut last year. He'll be joined by six-time All-Star Vlad Guerrero (.276, 19 HR, 58 RBI) of South Boston and first-timer Jason Bay (.259, 16 HR, 67 RBI) of Vancouver. Coming off the bench will be Bay's teammate and fellow All-Star virgin J.D. Drew. It's a bit of a surprise that Drew isn't starting considering his numbers (.352, 1.121 OPS, 15 HR, 43 R). The other outfield reserve also is somewhat of a surprise considering his numbers: D.C.'s Carlos Beltran, a two-time All-Star hitting a very empty .270 (.729 OPS, 4 HR, 5 SB), though he is one of the game's top defensive center fielders... The Morris DHs are two of the most feared hitters in baseball, Carolina's Travis Hafner (.287, 1.010 OPS, 18 HR, 40 RBI), a first-timer, and Vancouver's Vancouver's David Ortiz (.247, .867 OPS, 22 HR, 70 RBI), back for the second time.

Joining Giles in the Hanover outfield will be Phoenix's Ichiro Suzuki (.293, 9 3B, 52 R), who is here for the fifth-straight year -- every year he's been in the league! He's joined by Las Vegas's Reggie Sanders, who is hitting .240 with a .819 OPS in 96 AB with the Rats, but overall  .270 (.928 OPS) with 29 HR and 72 RBI thanks to the tremendous numbers he put up with D.C. before last month's trade. Sanders, at 38, is this year's oldest All-Star debutante... Just edging out the competition to return for a second-straight season is Honolulu's Johnny Damon (.312, 6 3B, 50 R)... The DH slot is once again split between Las Vegas and Newark, with  first-timer Tony Clark (.240, 27 HR, 77 RBI) of the Rats getting the start over seven-time All-Star Manny Ramirez (.256, 21 HR, 72 RBI).

Let's Get It Started!

Tied for the most votes received is Hanover Division's starting pitcher, Las Vegas's Rich Harden (7-5, 3.13 ERA, 11.4 R/9). It's his first start in the All-Star Game, though he made the team as a reserve for the first time last year. Harden leads the Hanover hurlers in ERA, H/9 (7.0) and lowest OPS allowed (.657), and is second in the division in R/9 and K/9 (8.1). Backing up Harden will be Newark's John Smoltz (11-3, 3.63 ERA, 12.6 R/9), a six-time All-Star (four times as a starting pitcher, twice as a reliever), and three guys making their All-Star debuts: Hoboken's Carlos Silva (8-4, 3.21 ERA, 9.3 R/9); Honolulu's Jeff Suppan (9-4, 3.50 ERA, 12.6 R/9); and Marietta's A.J. Burnett (6-4, 4.25 ERA, 13.7 R/9).

Opposing Harden will be South Boston's Chris Carpenter (11-3, 3.97 ERA, 11.5 R/9), who gets the start in his first-ever All-Star appearance. Ironically, Carpenter finished just a handful of percentage points ahead of Arkansas veteran Roger Clemens (6-5, 2.81 ERA, 8.4 R/9), a five-time All-Star still looking for his first start. The only other All-Star veteran among the Morris starting pitchers is Carolina's Roy Halladay (8-3, 3.76 ERA, 10.4 R/9), here for the first time since his All-Star debut in 2003. The first-timers are Carlos Zambrano (10-3, 3.47 ERA, 11.0 R/9) of Carolina and Doug Davis (10-2, 2.83 ERA, 11.4 R/9) of Philly.

Tied with Carpenter for most votes among Hanover players are two of the most dominating closers in baseball: Marietta's Mariano Rivera (2-2, 17 SV, 1.79 ERA, 8.0 R/9) and Westwood's B.J. Ryan (2-2, 7 SV, 2.36 ERA, 11.0 R/9). Ryan, a southpaw, is here for the first time, while Rivera has the most All-Star appearances (9) of any player on either roster and is tied for second all-time. Joining them in the bullpen will be three-time All-Star Jason Isringhausen (1-3, 13 SV, 3.82 ERA, 12.9 R/9) of Hoboken and first-timers Justin Duchscherer (2-1, 6 SV, 9 holds, 2.30 ERA, 10.1 R/9) of Las Vegas and Derrick Turnbow (1-3, 11 SV, 2.13 ERA, 7.8 R/9) of Honolulu.

Putting out the fires for the Morris Division will be Vancouver closer Billy Wagner (1-2, 13 SV, 2.50 ERA, 11.8 R/9), who is here for the fifth straight year, tying him with Pujols and Ichiro for the longest active streak of consecutive All-Star appearances. (The record is nine, held by Mike Piazza -- he played in every game held between 1994 and 2003, with the caveat that no game was played in 1995.) Setting up Wagner will be a pair of two-time All-Stars in Carolina's Francisco Cordero (1-4, 12 SV, 2.39 ERA, 12.7 R/9) and Hillsborough's Giovanni Carrara (1-2, 2 holds, 2.05 ERA, 10.6 R/9) and a pair of first-timers in Arkansas's Brad Lidge (0-4, 12 SV, 3.03 ERA, 10.1 R/9) and Philly's Francisco Rodriguez (2-4, 15 SV, 4.82 ERA, 13.0 R/9).

Not This Year

Arkansas' Barry Bonds has been here a DMBL record 10 times, including six straight seasons from '00-'05. But he's sitting out this season and that includes the All-Star Game... Newark's Randy Johnson, a nine-time All-Star who has the record for most starts (four), had a disappointing first half by his standards (7-4, 4.89 ERA, 12.4 R/9, 83 Ks) and received just one vote... Another nine-time All-Star, Westwood's Mike Piazza, is having a terrible year (.221, .706 OPS, though with 13 HR, 43 RBI), but he still just missed making the roster for what would have been a record-tying 10th year. The absence of Johnson and Piazza allowed Mariano Rivera to join them for a three-way tie for second in most all-time appearances... For the third straight year, D.C.'s Ivan Rodriguez and Vancouver's Greg Maddux, each a seven-time All-Star, is home this weekend, as are the following six-time All-Stars: Arkansas' Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling; Honolulu's Jason Giambi; Marietta's Ken Griffey Jr. and Gary Sheffield; Vancouver's Jeff Kent; and Westwood's Craig Biggio. Five-timers not invited this year: D.C.'s Tom Glavine; Hoboken's Roberto Hernandez and Larry Walker; and Marietta's Trevor Hoffman.

Why not me?

The level of competition at first base and designated hitter in both divisions was extremely high this year, but it's still shocking to see Hillsborough rookie Ryan Howard off the team this year. Howard is hitting .318 (1.033 OPS) with 21 HR and 56 RBI this year. Detractors will note he's a part-time player, with just 10 at-bats against lefties this year (0 H, 1 BB, 5 K). And he is competing for the division's only first base slot against one of the best hitters in baseball, Albert Pujols (.321, .972 OPS, 23 HR, 67 RBI). But the real surprise wasn't that Howard didn't make the team, but that he didn't receive a single vote! Seven ballots went to Pujols, and one each went to Carolina's Paul Konerko (.269, .855 OPS, 19 HR, 45 RBI) and D.C.'s Lyle Overbay (.260, .713 OPS, 6 HR, 23 RBI).

Other batters who may have deserved a better fate include Arkansas C Javier Valentin (.264, 14 HR, 42 RBI); Carolina 3B Aramis Ramirez (.288, 23 2B, 43 RBI); Hillsborough 2B Robinson Cano (.306, 25 2B, 60 R); Hoboken OF Geoff Jenkins (.281, 23 2B, 44 R); Honolulu DH Jason Giambi (.238, 21 HR, 49 RBI); Las Vegas OF Pat Burrell (.284, 17 HR, 53 RBI); Marietta SS Derek Jeter (.281, 7 HR, 46 R); Newark OF Milton Bradley (.311, 15 HR, 47 R); Phoenix 2B Mark Grudzielanek (.291, 15 2B, 42 RBI); South Boston 1B Dan Johnson (.317, 20 2B, 54 RBI) and Westwood SS Jose Reyes (.287, 11 3B, 46 R).

He admittedly isn't pitching up to his Ben McDonald Award-winning performance of last year, but it's still a surprise to see Philly's Johan Santana (6-6, 4.46 ERA, 11.8 R/9) not make the team. He started last year's All-Star Game for the Morris Division and was the game's MVP after pitching three perfect innings... It's not easy pitching for the team with the league's worst offense, so it's surprising the voters didn't feel a little more sympathy for D.C.'s Kris Benson, whose .600 W% (6-4) is 182 points better than his team's. Benson is 4th in R/9 (10.3), 7th in ERA (.3.48) and lowest OPS allowed (.678), tied for 7th in quality starts (10) and quality start percentage (.625) and tied for 8th in innings (111.1), but got the same number of votes as Carolina's Barry Zito (6-7, 4.18 ERA, 13.1 R/9). Even more egregious than leaving off Benson is leaving off his wife!

Pitchers who had tough breaks: Arkansas SP Pedro Martinez (8-4, 4.11 ERA, 9.9 R/9); Hillsborough SP Bartolo Colon (10-3, 3.42 ERA, 11.3 R/9); Hoboken RP Neal Cotts (4-3, 3 SV, 3.11 ERA, 9.8 R/9); Marietta SP Jon Lieber (8-4, 4.29 ERA, 12.0 R/9) and RP Aaron Fultz (2.37 ERA, 8.8 R/9); Philly RP Cliff Politte (2-2, 2 SV, 2.29 ERA, 9.4 R/9); Phoenix RP Rafael Betancourt (1-0, 2.23 ERA, 10.9 R/9); and Vancouver SP Jake Peavy (10-2, 4.55 ERA, 12.3 R/9) and RP David Riske (2-1, 1 SV, 2.40 ERA, 8.1 R/9).