It’s a mere moment in a man’s life between the All-Star Game and an old timer’s game

by UK American Sports Fans

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The 83rd All Star Game will take place at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. The American League and the National League compete in a showcase event with some of MLB’s best players on show. I’m not a great fan of these types of events as it breaks up the season and can be a huge distraction for players. I guess I’m probably in the minority and it’s my first so I’d better pack my cynicism away and get the kettle on for a late night. Even though my team, the Tampa Bay Rays, don’t have anyone in the starting lineups, pitchers David Price and game save specialist Fernando Rodney are in the bullpen.

The National League have won the last two All Star Games after a 13 year win drought so it seems like a good idea to have a look and see where the game will be won and lost….

Catcher: Mike Napoli (Texas Rangers) vs Buster Posey (SF Giants)

For me, it’s definitely National League Posey that takes this matchup. He’s batting at .289 and 43 RBI’s whereas Napoli has scored more runs but has far less RBI’s.

1st Base: Prince Fielder (Detroit Tigers) vs Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds)

This one is a heart versus head debate – Votto’s stats are better than Fielder’s but he is just to big a player, physically as well as metaphorically. Fielder won the 2012 Home Run Derby so will be buzzing. However, I’m going to go with Votto slightly edging it.

2nd Base: Robinson Cano (NY Yankees) vs Dan Uggla (Atlanta Braves)

Clear winner for me in, 4 times All Star, Cano despite his poor showing in the 2012 Home Run Derby. Uggla is batting way below the league average compared to Cano leading the way.

3rd Base: Adrian Beltre (Texas Rangers) vs Pablo Sandoval (SF Giants)

Another close call but Beltre edges it for me. An excellent set of stats from Beltre but a fit Sandoval, activated from DL last month, may have got close to those numbers.

Shortstop: Derek Jeter (NY Yankees) vs Rafael Furcal (St Louis Cardinals)

Jeter. Without hesitation. An impossible feat to try and match Jeter but Furcal has more RBI’s this season. Also, the fielding sabermetric for fielding, Ultimate Zone Rating (UZR), has Jeter as the league’s worst shortstop (-10.8) against Furcal’s -4.4.

Outfielders: Josh Hamilton (Texas Rangers), Curtis Granderson (NY Yankees), Jose Bautista (Toronto Blue Jays) vs Matt Kemp (LA Dodgers) – INJ, Carlos Beltran (St Louis Cardinals), Melky Cabrera (SF Giants)

I’m favouring the National League outfielders trio of Beltran, Cabrera and the deputizing Ryan Braun. Cabrera’s .353 batting average screams off the stats page.

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz (Boston Red Sox) vs Carlos Gonzalez (Colorado Rockies)

It’s a real David versus Goliath matchup (sorry!). Ortiz, however, dwarfs Gonzalez with his 6 feet 4 inches and 230 pounds. That’s where Ortiz’s statistical domination ends as Gonzalez as a .330 batting average and has more RBI’s. Unsurprisingly, Ortiz has more homers. I give this one to Ortiz purely on current form as he’s made more of his At Bat opportunities recently.

Starting Pitchers: Justin Verlander (Detroit Tigers) vs Matt Cain (SF Giants)

How do you pick a winner from this one? Cain has threw a perfect game this season and is outperforming the mercurial Tim Lincecum. Verlander is consistently tricky to hit and performs at a very high level. I’m going for a draw and this one, but feel that the National League have the edge when you consider that R.A.Dickey didn’t make the starting lineup! In fact I consider Dickey to be the better pitcher out of the three this season.

So there you have it, my analysis of the starting lineups for the All Star Game. My prediction is a high scoring game with the American League winning by 2.