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| Photo by Richard Wilkins Jr. |
Well, the Phillies will have two All-Stars, both of which are well deserved. Normally I'd say a team with a losing record should get one All-Star, but neither of them is undeserving. In the case of Cliff Lee, he's a regular now, headed to his fourth All-Star game, second as a Phillie. He's got ten wins, a sub-3.00 ERA, and the track record to deserve it. His fellow All-Star, left-fielder Dom Brown though, is a first-timer. His .279/.869, 22 homers 60 RBI, 39 extra-base hits, and 8 steals season numbers are well-deserving of this bid. And to think that some people though he was a bust who should be dealt before the season.
Not every all-star deserves it though, and certainly not every starter. With his .263 average and 13 homers, it can be argued that Bryce Harper is the third best left-fielder in the NL East, and that he's not close to Brown this season, but he'll get to start on stupid fan voting and hype alone. I'm sure that rookie-phenom Matt Harvey will get to start, since it is in the home-park of his Mets, but Clayton Kershaw should be an obvious choice. Not that Yadier Molina isn't awesome, but of course the awful fans of St. Louis voted him in over the reigning MVP and World Series champion of two of the last three years, Buster Posey. That's what happens with fans who clap for everything.
I'm not a big fan of All-Star Games, and may not even watch this one. It's just not my thing. I do hate seeing bad choices made though of who makes it, because it does shape the context through which many fans see a player. Hence, why this should be a season-ending ballgame….
