I figured with the all-star game coming up we could go over a run down of each position and who might be deserving of the all-star selection. We will break down 1st, 2nd, 3rd, SS, OF and Catcher as those are the positions that are voted on by the fans. Today we look at 2nd base.
Just like last time, let us first take a look at the current voting totals. Again these numbers are current as of the latest article released by MLB.com on June 21st 2010.
| 2nd Base | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| RANK | PLAYER NAME | AL TEAM | TOTAL VOTES |
| 1. | Robinson Cano | Yankees | 2,330,278 |
| 2. | Dustin Pedroia | Red Sox | 1,227,495 |
| 3. | Ian Kinsler | Rangers | 1,075,296 |
| 4. | Orlando Hudson | Twins | 848,402 |
| 5. | Ben Zobrist | Rays | 648,641 |
Now let's take a closer look at each of these players starting at the bottom and working our way back up to number one. All Stats are before games on the 24th of June took place
5. Ben Zobrist - .298/.364/.423 - 5HR 38RBI 29BB 54K - Zobrist really started out the year slowly and by the end of April he was only batting .247 with a .320 OBP. He had a lot of people questioning whether he was just a flash in the pan last year and whether or not he could keep up with the rest elite 2nd basemen from around the league. He has since started to put things back together but he still isn't quite where he was last year. I wonder how many of these votes are for performance of this year vs holdover from last year?
4. Orlando Hudson - .286/.359/.391 - 3HR 17RBI 22BB 34K - Known much more for his glove then his bat, Hudson will never blow anyone away with his offensive prowess. Because of the lack of offensive numbers Hudson will always be hard pressed to win more votes over the likes of other sluggin 2nd basemen. Of course he is far from a liability in the lineup still hitting for decent average and walking at a fair clip. Does he deserve more votes?
3. Ian Kinsler - .282/.380/.359 - 1HR 19RBI 26BB 31K - Kinsler missed just about all of the first month of the season with recovery. Since coming back he hasn't quite been his normal power hitting self but I have to imagine taking that much time at the beginning of the season can really through a crimp into things. His 1 home run of the year came on May 18th against Texas The Angels. So far he has only made it into 48 games. This by far seems like a history pick more then anything. As much as I like Kinsler I don't think anyone can really say he deserves to start the All-Star game.
2. Dustin Pedroia - .280/.357/.460 -9HR 36RBI 34BB 35K - While he still reportedly has trouble with the high inside heat, Pedroia really is a star player. He is a good fielder and is great at the plate. He is putting together another solid year hitting for both power and average and at only 26 we probably will be seeing him at the top of the voting boards for quite some time. What do you think? Does he deserve the votes or is the Red Sox Hype machine pumping him up?
1. Robinson Cano - .362/.412/.592 - 14HR 50RBI 22BB 35K - Well.... Whether you love or hate the Yankees you cannot deny that Cano is having one hell of a season. He leads all of baseball with his 362 average which is about 20 points above Morneau. Not only is he hitting for average he has found his power stroke as he looks to improve on his 25Home Runs from last year. He is 3rd in MLB in OBP and 4th in SLG. He is 10 behind Cabrera with his 50 RBI. He is in the midst of a Monster first half.
This is a slam dunk. Cano has just been too good. He is far and away the leader in votes and in my opinion he deserves it. Pedroia will probably get the call as the backup but Cano does deserve the start. It obviously helps that he has the Yankee voting block behind him but this is one time where they are right on the money.
What do you think? Do you agree with me? Sound off in the comments below!
Today's title comes from the classic Who's on first sketch from Abbott and Costello.