The Texas Rangers vs. the National League

As usual, there are people who are upset with the All-Star selections.  Go to a message board on MLB.com or ESPN.com, and you'll find fans of various teams complaining that their favorite player wasn't selected or "Why was this guy chosen over him?"  But I've never seen anything like what I saw today from the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers.  Both teams basically accused NL manager Tony LaRussa of intentionally not picking their guys.

Reds manager Dusty Baker felt that starter Johnny Cueto and second baseman Brandon Phillips both should've been All-Stars, and he accused LaRussa of holding a grudge against those two players because they were at the center of a brawl during a Reds-Cardinals game in 2010.  The Brewers, meanwhile, were just as vocal that starter Zack Greinke, a former Royal, was left off the NL roster.  LaRussa's argument for not picking Cueto made sense.  Cueto's pitching Sunday and would've been replaced on the roster anyway, otherwise he would've been chosen.  LaRussa said the same thing about Greinke, unaware of the fact that the Brewers changed their rotation so that he'll pitch on Saturday, thus making him available for the All-Star Game on Tuesday.

I think this public bellyaching, especially the shots taken at LaRussa, is unprofessional and uncalled for.  All-Star snubs happen every year.  There are simply more deserving players than spots on the roster.  And why is it being taken out on LaRussa?  The players didn't vote any of these three guys in, either.  LaRussa only gets to make eight selections, and half of those are used up to fulfill the one from every team requirement.

Here's a breakdown of the manager selections in the National League:

• Wade Miley, Diamondbacks
• Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers
• Cole Hamels, Phillies
• Jonathan Papelbon, Phillies
• Huston Street, Padres
• Carlos Ruiz, Phillies
• Ian Desmond, Nationals
• Jay Bruce, Reds
• Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins

Miley, Street and Stanton are team representatives.  So are the Phillies, and all three selections are valid.  Hamels is the only guy in that rotation who did anything in the first half.  They'd be even more out of the race than they already are without him.  Papelbon was an All-Star every year in Boston, and he hasn't missed a beat in his first year in the National League.  And you're not going to find anybody who would say that Carlos Ruiz doesn't deserve to be an All-Star after the first half he had. 

That leaves us with three: Clayton Kershaw, Ian Desmond and Jay Bruce.  Kershaw won the Cy Young last year, is left-handed (a thought for late-game matchup situations), and plays for the team that had the best record in the NL for most of the first half.  Sorry, but you're not going to convince me Zack Greinke should be an All-Star over him.  Now you've got Ian Desmond and Jay Bruce.  LaRussa did pick a Red in Bruce.  I would've taken Phillips instead of Bruce, but certainly not both of them.  And I love the selection of Ian Desmond.  He certainly deserves the trip to Kansas City.  Maybe you do Phillips and Bryce Harper to keep it as a Red and a National, but otherwise, you get no argument here with those selections.

What I take an issue with is the fact that the entire Texas Rangers team is going to the All-Star Game, which either nobody else notices or everybody's fine with.  Mike Napoli shouldn't be there, but I'm not going to begrudge Rangers fans for voting their guys into the starting lineup, so my issue with him is minimal.  My issue with the American League team is the fact that every one of Ron Washington's available manager selections was one of his own guys.

Washington gets two fewer manager selections because of the starting and backup DH, and here are the seven guys he picked:

• Ryan Cook, Athletics
• Felix Hernandez, Mariners
• Joe Mauer, Twins
• Billy Butler, Royals
• Matt Harrison, Rangers
• Joe Nathan, Rangers
• Elvis Andrus, Rangers

I have no idea who Ryan Cook is or why he's the A instead of Josh Reddick, but, whatever, he's your token A.  Fine.  Who else are you going to take from the Mariners other than King Felix?  Unfortunately, Ichiro's popularity isn't what it once was.  Joe Mauer should be starting.  He's the token Twin every year and having his normal first half, so no issues there.  Why is Billy Butler the Royal, though?  Does the AL really need three DHs?  No.  Alcides Escobar or Jonathan Broxton should've been the Royal.

But outside of those four token team representatives, Washington used his remaining three manager picks on his own guys.  Really?  Yes, they have the best record in the American League, but are you telling me all three of these guys belong on the All-Star team?  I'm even willing to concede that there should be a Rangers starter on the team.  But it should be Yu Darvish.  But if Washington wants it to be Harrison, the AL leader in wins, instead, so be it.  Joe Nathan, however, is this year's winner of the Omar Infante Award as randomest All-Star.  He made a nice comeback after missing all of last season.  So what?  That doesn't make him an All-Star.  And don't even get me started on Elvis Andrus.  There's no way he's even considered for anything other than the Final Vote if somebody else is the manager.

And not to beat a dead horse, but the pitcher added to the roster as a replacement for the injured CC Sabathia is the Angels' C.J. Wilson, who just happens to be a former Ranger.  Although, I'm willing to give Washington a pass on that one, since I think the injury replacements are the next guys in line on the player ballot, which Washington doesn't really have anything to do with.