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2007 National League All-Star TeamProposed Starters and Reserve Players for the NL All Star SquadHere are the top two players at each position in the National League.
One Man's Votes for the 2007 National League All Star Team.Catcher (s) Russell Martin, Los Angeles Dodgers (.294, 8 HR, 49 RBI) (r) Brian McCann, Atlanta Falcons (.268, 7 HR, 41 RBI) Martin has been a blessing for the hitting-challenged Dodgers. Combined his fine offensive numbers with his solid defense and adept handling of a very good pitching staff, and it all adds up to Martin's first career start as an All-Star. McCann tailed off a bit from 2006, but he's still worthy of an appearance in the big game. First Base (s) Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers (.282, 27 HR, 63 RBI, .994 OPS) (r) Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals (.298, 16 HR, 48 RBI, .527 Slg. %) Fielder is the consensus first half MVP in the National League and Pujols has great numbers despite a prolonged early season slump. These two along with Philadelphia's Ryan Howard just may be the greatest trio of slugging first baseman to play in the same league at the same time since Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx and Hank Greenberg all patrolled first base in the mid-1930s. Second Base (s) Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies (.327, 13 HR, 60 RBI, 30 Doubles) (r) Dan Uggla, Florida Marlins (.260, 16 HR, 48 RBI, 61 Runs, 29 Doubles) Utley is the Southern California cool version of Don Mattingly. Think about it. Left-handed batter. Sweet-swinging. Leader by example. Hits about .330. Smacks 30 home runs and drives in 120. Plays incredible, Gold-Glove level defense and everybody likes him. It's a pretty fair comparison. Right now, Utley is far and away the best second baseman in the game, in every respect. He has the capacity to own this All-Star position the way Joe Morgan once did. Shortstop (s) Jose Reyes, New York Mets (.314, .395 OBP, 3 HR, 33 Runs, 62 Runs, 38 SB) (r) J.J. Hardy, Milwaukee Brewers (.281, .339 OBP, 18 HR, 50 RBI, 44 Runs, 0 SB) (There are just too many good shortstops to even argue about these choices. Suffice it to say that Very Honorable Mentions went to Hanley Ramirez, Jimmy Rollins, and Edgar Renteria, all of whom deserve to be All-Stars). Third Base (s) Miguel Cabrera, Florida Marlins (.324, 17 HR, 55 RBI, .980 OPS) (r) David Wright, New York Mets (.288, 13 HR, 42 RBI) Cabrera was a no-brainer. Wright edged Aramis Ramirez because he is substantially ahead of the Cubs third baseman in hits, runs scored and on base percentage. Outfielders (s) Ken Griffey, Jr., Cincinnati Reds (.293, 21 HR, 49 RBI, .960 OPS) Brilliant season for a brilliant player. Griffey deserves a few healthy seasons just so he can remind the country of what it missed during the Steroid Era. (s) Matt Holiday, Colorado Rockies (.349, 13 HR, 60 RBI) (s) Eric Byrnes, Arizona Diamondbacks (.311, 13 HR, 44 RBI, 48 Runs, 14 SB) Byrnes gets the nod ahead of the likes of Alfonso Soriano, Barry Bonds and Carlos Lee because,as fine as those players are, Byrnes is the sole offensive light on the Arizona Diamondacks, whom he has carried on his back to a tie for first at the season's mid-point. His stats are pretty good, too. (r) Aaron Rowand, Philadelphia Phillies (.314, 10 HR, 40 RBI) (r) Alfonso Soriano, Chicago Cubs (.305, 15 HR, 30 RBI) A lot of people are going to disagree with this pick. But look where Mr. Soriano currently ranks among NL outfielders in the following categories:
(r) Adam Dunn, Cincinnati Reds (.271, 22 HR, 52 RBI, 52 Runs, 2 Triples). The Big Guy isn't just a Dave Kingman-type slugger this season. He's batting .271, has an on base percentage of .362, and he's got 37 extra base hits. That is hard to beat. So there it is. Your National League All-Star Team. __________________
The copyright of the article 2007 National League All-Star Team in Baseball is owned by James Lincoln Ray. Permission to republish 2007 National League All-Star Team in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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