Why He Keeps Going

Barry Bonds has knee problems in both knees. That is well documented. His body is breaking down at an alarming rate (an effect of steroids...) another well documented fact. So why does he keep going? Well he recently passed Babe Ruth for the most home runs by a left handed hitter. And he also passed the only white man who had more home runs than he did. I may sound a little racist here, but with as racist as Barry is I don't really care, I think he keeps going not because he wants to have more home runs than anyone else, but that he wants to be the most prolific BLACK home run hitter. I think that he wants to be the black man with the most home runs, not just the person. He wants to be the greatest black athlete in history. Well I don't care, he still isn't in this writer's opinion...

All-Star Voting

My good pal Buh Buh Ken posted who he chooses to be on the All-Star team earlier tonight, and it got me thinking of who I would choose to be the starters for each position. By the way I do think that the fans choosing the starters is a little erroneous. When the leading vote getters for each position except for one in the American League is either a Red Sox or Yankees player it just shows how the fans have no idea who should start or even be in the game for that matter.

This is also a year where the game is played in an NL park so there is no DH. Well in my opinion the All-Star game is an exhibition game for the enjoyment of the fans and I think that the fans would rather see someone like David Ortiz or Travis Hafner hit instead of whoever is selected to be the starting pitcher. The game also should have no impact on who gets home field advantage in the World Series. It just baffles me why Major League Baseball decided to do that. And quite frankly, not every team deserves a player in the game. Please tell me who is worthy of representing the Kansas City Royals this year. Please I beg you to find someone who is deserving of a spot on the roster.

Well off the soapbox for a while and here are my choices for All-Star starters. I will give a little explanation for my choosing each player at each position.

American League
Catcher - Joe Mauer (Min) - The guy is leading all of baseball in hitting and he is the best catcher in the game by a large margin in this reporter's opinion.
First Base - Travis Hafner (Cle) - He is a Designated Hitter by all standards, but the game is being played in Pittsburgh which means no DH in the game.
Second Base - Jose Lopez (Sea) - The weakest position in the voting and nobody has really stood out of the pack here. I give it to him because aside from Ichiro, he has been the only bright spot on the lackluster Seattle ballclub.
Shortstop - Miguel Tejada (Bal) - Other than Bill Hall he is the only player who has double digit homers at the shortstop position. He's also hitting a salty .332.
Third Base - Troy Glaus (Tor) - More homers, RBI, and a higher OPS than A-Rod. I gave some consideration to Mike Lowell too, but not as much production and the All-Star game is about hitting homers and giving the fans a fun game to watch.
Outfield - Ichiro Suzuki (Sea), Vernon Wells (Tor), Nick Swisher (Oak) - Not because I have him on my fantasy teams, but I think Swisher deserves it. He is putting up solid power numbers and is still hitting around .300. Ichiro started out rough, but he has pulled it together and is now the second leading hitter in the bigs. He is also fun to watch in right field. Wells has been having a solid year with a .329 batting average 15 homers and 49 RBI. Good production from all of these guys.

National League
Catcher - Brian McCann (Atl) - Hitting .350 at a weak position. There really is no other option.
First Base - Nomar Garciaparra (LAD) - Toughest position to choose from, but with Pujols injured I thought I would pick someone else. Berkman is having a big year, but Nomar is leading the NL in hitting (he doesn't have enough ABs to qualify, but he needs just a few more) and has been a defensive whiz in the position switch. He is already the comeback player of the year.
Second Base - Chase Utley (Phi) - Best second baseman in baseball and he is having another stellar year hitting over .300 with 12 homers and 40 RBI.
Shortstop - Edgar Renteria (Atl) - Another tough decision because Hanley Ramirez has had a great rookie year. Renteria is hitting 30 points higher and has more homers and RBI so I chose him.
Third Base - Miguel Cabrera (Fla) - He and David Wright are so close in every category, but Cabrera has a higher batting average and OPS so I will go with him.
Outfield - Alfonso Soriano (Was), Jason Bay (Pit), Carlos Lee (Mil) - Ok a little bit of a homer pick, but Lee has 20 bombs and is the only stability in that Milwaukee lineup so he gets the nod. Soriano has been the best player in baseball aside from Albert Pujols and is leading the league in outfield assists. And what a moment would it be to have a hometown player starting in the game. Jason Bay has been a stud this year hitting .314 and having more RBI than strikeouts. He also has the 6th highest OPS in the Majors, 3rd in the NL. Not to mention how he hit a homer in 5 straight games earlier in the year.