Picking the 2015 American League All-Stars

Yesterday, we tackled the National League’s 34 most deserving candidates, so today, we’ll do the American League. When it comes to picking players, I lean very heavily towards in-season performance, as I tend towards the camp that sees the game as a reward for the players more than a showcase for the fans. It is both, of course, and trying to serve both masters can make for some tricky decisions, but I’d rather reward a deserving player for a big first half than simply invite the same players every year based on their legacy. I know others see it differently, and that’s fine; I personally just find it more interesting to recognize performance than name-value.

In putting this together, I broke the 34 roster spots into 21 position players and 13 pitchers, and I also held to the rule that every team had to be represented. Injured players were not considered, so while Andrew Miller will likely be picked and then replaced, I didn’t bother with that formality. And while the only stat listed is a player’s WAR, it’s just there for reference; I didn’t select the players based solely on their WAR totals. Oh, and for pitchers, the WAR listed is a 50/50 blend of FIP-based and RA9-based WAR.

Okay, on to the team. We’ll go position by position, with the starter listed first.

Catcher

Russell Martin, Toronto: +2.9 WAR
Stephen Vogt, Oakland: +2.9 WAR
Brian McCann, New York: +2.1 WAR

Vogt’s having the better offensive season, and by Statcorner’s framing metric, he’s very slightly ahead in a part of catcher defense we’re not measuring, but I’ll still take Martin as the starter. His track record and his strong history of defensive work behind the plate give him a slight edge for me, though certainly Vogt has played exceptionally well in the first half of the season, and it wouldn’t be any kind of injustice if he started instead. McCann is a pretty easy pick as the third catcher, as he’s having a strong rebound season, and there are a lack of quality alternatives; sorry, Royals fans, but Salvador Perez doesn’t belong this year.

First Base

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit: +3.5 WAR
Albert Pujols, Anaheim: +2.1 WAR

Cabrera remains a dominant force as a hitter, and unlike in the National League, the first base crop in the AL is pretty weak, so Cabrera is a slam-dunk selection as the starter. Pujols has slugged his way back into consideration for a spot after a couple of down years, and edges out Eric Hosmer and Mark Teixeira for the backup role. With more deserving candidates elsewhere and a couple of actual DHs to fill those roles, I’m only taking two first baseman from the AL.

Second Base

Jason Kipnis, Cleveland: +4.6 WAR
Brian Dozier, Minnesota: +2.9 WAR

Kipnis has been a monster for the Indians, and has run away from the pack as the deserving starter this year, though that’s no disrespect to Dozier, who continues to establish himself as one of the game’s most underrated stars. Both are terrific players, but Kipnis has just been a little more terrific this year.

Shortstop

Jose Iglesias, Detroit: +2.0 WAR
Xander Bogaerts, Boston: +1.9 WAR
Carlos Correa, Houston: +1.3 WAR

The current crop of shortstops in the AL is as weak as it has been in some time, but Iglesias is hitting surprisingly well, and his glove remains a legitimate asset, so he’s a pretty easy call as the starter. Bogaerts hasn’t yet developed the power he was projected to have as a prospect, but has settled in as a decent contact hitter and has improved dramatically on defense, so he gets the call behind Iglesias. Correa, though, looks like the future of this position, and has destroyed American League pitching since getting the call to the big leagues. Even in just 90 plate appearances, he’s been roughly as valuable as Alcides Escobar or Brad Miller has over the whole year, so I’ll take his elite performance in a smaller sample.

Third Base

Josh Donaldson, Toronto: +4.3 WAR
Manny Machado, Baltimore: +3.6 WAR
Mike Moustakas, Kansas City: +2.4 WAR

Donaldson is probably the frontrunner for AL MVP at the moment, as he remains one of the game’s truly elite players, so while Machado is quickly developing into a superstar, this is still Donaldson’s position for now. Machado can take over next year, and it isn’t clear that he’ll be dethroned any time soon, but his coronation will have to wait one more year. Moustakas gets the call over Evan Longoria for the last reserve spot here, though it was mostly a coin toss, and you could easily defend either selection.

Outfield

Mike Trout, Anaheim: +4.3 WAR
Lorenzo Cain, Kansas City: +2.9 WAR
Brett Gardner, New York: +2.7 WAR
Alex Gordon, Kansas City: +2.6 WAR
Jose Bautista, Toronto: +2.5 WAR
Kevin Kiermaier, Tampa Bay: +3.1 WAR

Mike Trout is still Mike Trout, and then flanking him, we find a number of elite defenders having strong offensive seasons. Cain continues to improve at the plate while playing ridiculous defense in center field, and is establishing himself as a true star at this point. Gardner, interestingly enough, has a higher wRC+ than Bautista, and has developed into a legitimate offensive threat even while his defense has regressed as he’s gotten older. Gordon is having his typical Alex Gordon season, while Kiermaier is doing a pretty good Lorenzo Cain impersonation. If there aren’t enough home runs in this group for your liking, you could easily argue for Yoenis Cespedes, George Springer, or J.D. Martinez, but I’ll take the more well-rounded guys.

Designated Hitter

Prince Fielder, Texas: +1.9 WAR
Nelson Cruz, Seattle: +2.1 WAR

The AL is crowded with DH candidates this year, as Cruz is realistically a DH even if the Mariners have inexplicably made him an outfielder again. With real outfielders on this roster, though, there’s no need for Cruz to bring his glove to Cincinnati. And yes, Alex Rodriguez probably deserves a spot on this team, given how well he’s hit, but he’s not having a clearly better season than either Fielder or Cruz, and it’s tough to carry three DHs, so he’s the last guy I had to cut to get down to 34.

Starting Pitcher

Chris Sale, Chicago: +2.9 WAR
Dallas Keuchel, Houston: +3.5 WAR
Sonny Gray, Oakland: +3.4 WAR
Chris Archer, Tampa Bay: +3.2 WAR
David Price, Detroit: +2.8 WAR
Corey Kluber, Cleveland: +2.3 WAR
Felix Hernandez, Seattle: +2.2 WAR
Clay Buchholz, Boston: +2.2 WAR

Sale is probably the best pitcher in the AL at this point, and even if he doesn’t have the shiniest ERA in this group, I’ll put him on the hill in the first inning rather than punish him for pitching in front of some really terrible teammates. Keuchel, Gray, and Archer are the best of the breakout arms we’ve seen this year, and you could make a strong case for any of them getting the start; they’ve all been that good. Price, Kluber, and Hernandez are having just decent years by their own standards, but excellent year’s by anyone’s measure of performance, and are all still easily worth selecting. Buchholz is the rare Red Sox pitcher who is getting people out, and I’m not going to hold Hanley Ramirez’s defense against him.

With apologies to Scott Kazmir, Ubaldo Jimenez, and yes, Hector Santiago — I’m as surprised as you are — I only selected eight starting pitchers from the AL, because there were just too many great relief seasons to limit myself to four bullpen arms. If you have a strong preference for starting pitchers, you could grab one of those three and not be sorry about it.

Relief Pitcher

Dellin Betances, New York: +1.7 WAR
Wade Davis, Kansas City: +1.6 WAR
Glen Perkins, Minnesotsa: +1.2 WAR
Roberto Osuna, Toronto: +1.2 WAR
Zach Britton, Baltimore: +1.1 WAR

And this is without Andrew Miller, who would have been an easy pick if healthy. There’s just so much depth in the AL bullpens right now, and even taking these five, we’re ignoring guys like David Robertson and Carson Smith. Good luck to the National League trying to mount a comeback if they don’t get an early lead.

With those picks, we get the following starting line-up:

1. Jason Kipnis, 2B
2. Mike Trout, RF
3. Prince Fielder, DH
4. Miguel Cabrera, 1B
5. Josh Donaldson, 3B
6. Brett Gardner, LF
7. Russell Martin, C
8. Lorenzo Cain, CF
9. Jose Iglesias, SS

The line-up isn’t as intimidating as the National League’s group of hitters, but this is one hell of a defensive team, and with Bautista, Cruz, and Pujols on the bench, there should be plenty of options for pinch-hitting if need be. It’s not a traditional All-Star line-up, but the AL isn’t full of muscle-bound sluggers anymore, and this group represents what the game looks like in 2015.