mrmatas2277 Posted July 7 Report Share Posted July 7 By Jayson StarkESPN.comA quick look at where the new All-Star selection process went wrong -- and right:FAN MISTAKES (AL):At second, we'd take Bret Boone, who has nine more extra-base hits than Alfonso Soriano and eight fewer errors. At third, Hank Blalock and Corey Koskie have better numbers in almost every category than Troy Glaus. We'd settle for either one. The players picked Nomar over A-Rod, and we would, too. And with 80 RBI already, Vernon Wells ought to start over Hideki Matsui -- and everybody else -- in center field. But Wells must have forgotten to campaign in those Tokyo precincts.FAN MISTAKES (NL):Marcus Giles might have deserved to win at second base a month ago. But he's hitting .232 since June 1. We'll actually back the player vote at every NL position -- but especially at second base (Jose Vidro) and third (Mike Lowell over Scott Rolen).PLAYER MISTAKES (AL):People wondered if players would take this seriously. They obviously did. Our only quibbles with the player voting in the AL are at backup DH (Carl Everett over Frank Thomas?) and backup catcher (Ramon Hernandez over Jason Varitek?). We think Koskie ought to be on this team someplace, but so should Blalock. And we'll admit we're surprised to see Eddie Guardardo getting elected over Mariano Rivera or Troy Percival. But basically, these players did great.PLAYER MISTAKES (NL):And the NL players did even better. If we had a ballot, we would have voted for Orlando Cabrera over Rafael Furcal at short, for Mike Lieberthal as backup catcher over Paul Lo Duca, and for Jim Thome over Richie Sexson at first. But they're all close calls. We'll admit we were fascinated by the relatively high vote totals for Shawn Chacon (314) and the relatively low vote totals for Jim Edmonds (38). But basically, thanks to the players, the 26 elected NL All-Stars are almost impossible to argue with.MANAGER MISTAKES (AL):Mike Scioscia had so few choices to make, it's hard to differ with him. But Shigetoshi Hasegawa's selection (over Mariano Rivera, Mike Mussina or Gil Meche, among others) has a subtle "ex-Angel" ring to it, even if Hasegawa does have a 0.81 ERA.And Benjie Molina's inclusion on the 32nd-man ballot (over Koskie, Rocco Baldelli, Ordonez, etc.) has a slightly less subtle "current-Angel" ring to it. But most of the problems with the back end of the AL roster are the system's fault, not Scioscia's.MANAGER MISTAKES (NL):Unlike Scoscia, who had very few options, Baker had two extra selections because the NL didn't elect any DHs. So he could have -- and should have -- taken Dontrelle Willis. But Russ Ortiz used to pitch for Baker in San Francisco, and Kerry Wood pitches for him now in Chicago -- and he just happened to pick both of them. Not that they weren't deserving, but this game needs Dontrelle Willis.Baker also could have taken Jake Peavy instead of Rondell White as his Padres representative -- which would have allowed him to add Brian Giles or Aramis Ramirez as his Pirate instead of Mike Williams and his 6.29 ERA. And it appears Baker pushed for Benito Santiago, who caught for him in San Francisco, and Corey Patterson, who roams center field for him now, on the 32nd-man ballot (over Lieberthal, Alex "The Marlin" Gonzalez, Jim Thome, Austin Kearns, etc.). But with so many spots locked up by electees, there's a lot less to blame on either manager than in possibly any year in history. BIGGEST OMISSIONS (AL POSITION PLAYERS):Rocco BaldelliCorey KoskieMagglio OrdonezBIGGEST OMISSIONS (NL POSITION PLAYERS):Alex (Florida) GonzalezJim ThomeBrian GilesBIGGEST OMISSIONS (AL PITCHERS):Mariano RiveraGil MecheMike MussinaBIGGEST OMISSIONS (NL PITCHERS):Dontrelle WillisHideo NomoOctavio DotelJayson Stark is a senior writer for ESPN.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Codica3 Posted July 7 Report Share Posted July 7 Originally posted by mrmatas2277 BIGGEST OMISSIONS (AL PITCHERS):Mariano RiveraGil MecheMike MussinaBIGGEST OMISSIONS (NL PITCHERS):Dontrelle WillisHideo NomoOctavio Dotel A-FUCKING-MEN!The pitchers are what I disagreed the most with.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicman Posted July 7 Report Share Posted July 7 armando benitez Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magellanmax Posted July 14 Report Share Posted July 14 Originally posted by vicman armando benitez That guy is a bust. I felt sorry for him a few days ago when he got booed just running onto the field, damn Mets fans are frustrated. But I really disagree with the Mussina thing, he aint all that anyho. Sure he had a great start, but he's been pitching god-awful lately. Same goes for Clemens,......sayonara after this season....and please wear a Toronto cap to the hall induction:tongue: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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