The All-Star game is about a month and a half away from commencing at Petco Park in California. Which New York Yankees will be making the trip?
The Major League All-Star game is one of the prominent traditions in the game of baseball as fans salivate over observing the best in the game take the field together.Although the fans decide who will be on the flight to San Diego, California and at least one member from every club will be included, it’s fascinating to speculate as to who from the 2016 New York Yankees will be included.
With the exclusion of some of the best players in the game, no one is promised a roster spot. And despite the highly-populated Yankee nation who will be voting for their team, there will be many men in pinstripes that will be given a rest during the All-Star break.
Plus, it’s not logical to expect a dozen members from a team that ranks 25 in runs scored and manages an overall ERA of 4.09 (17th) while finding themselves in fourth place in the American League East to be given an invite.
Nevertheless, there are a ton of notable talent on this roster that has the potential to represent the American League in hopes to clinch home field advantage in this year’s World Series.
Will the following players make the cut? Maybe, maybe not. But here are some of the boys from the Bronx that can arguably make the team, and the case on why they should.
Masahiro Tanaka
The Yankees’ ace, Masahiro Tanaka, has been on fleek for the majority of this young baseball season.
The 27-year old Japanese native is 3-0 with a 2.89 ERA in his 10 starts this season and is coming off an outing in which he surrendered a mere two hits over seven innings in an efficient fashion as he only threw 82 pitches (thanks, No-Run DMC).
Batters are struggling vigorously (.208) off Tanaka and if you take away two rough starts against the tough Royals and White Sox, he has held opponents to two runs or less in every contest this season.
But hey, include his two rough starts and his team is still 7-3 in games he starts. Comically, the Yankees won the contests in which he gave up four and six runs but dropped three games when he gave up two runs or less.
When you compare Tanaka with the rest of the AL, he gets lost in the crowd in some categories but emerges as a top pitcher in the rest. He is second in the AL in BB/9 (1.65), second in BABIP (.243) and has the sixth best war among pitchers with at least 60 innings pitched.
His ERA (2.89), BAA (.208), xFIP (79) and SIERRA (which answers the question: what is the underlying skill level of this pitcher?) all ranks in the top ten among AL Starters. Additionally, he is one of two qualified starters to have zero losses.
In comparison to his first All-Star appearance during his first half in America, it falls short, but not by much. His WHIP then was 1.005 and .964 here in 2016 but standard statistics show that the better Tanaka took the hill two years ago.
VERDICT:
Tanaka makes the All-Star team as a reserve starting pitcher and will make a relief appearance as a representative of the American League on July 12 barring, of course, any fall-off in production.
Nathan Eovaldi
Nathan Eovaldi has absolutely dazzled and worked his way up to stardom in the Bronx.
“Nasty Nate” currently owns a 6-2 record with a 3.71 ERA but has been influenced by a few shaky starts. According to Emmanuel Berbari, Eovaldi is on pace to win 20 games but as of right now, he’s emerging as an elite pitcher in the AL.
Against his nothing-but-nasty splitter, batters are batting .187 off the pitch and it ranks as the most effective splitter in all of baseball, according to FanGraphs.
His fastball velocity is up to 97 MPH, which is the best in the American League and only second in all of baseball sitting only behind Noah Syndergaard.
In his last three starts, Eovaldi has allowed one run or less and has pitched two two hitters while dealing a one-hitter against the Texas Rangers. He is also won four-straight starts with his last defeat coming on April 20.
VERDICT:
Eovaldi will not make this year’s midsummer classic. Unfortunately, his standard statistics do not separate themselves from the rest of the tough crowd that finds itself above “Nate Dog.”
Dellin Betances
Yes, the verdict is saved for the bottom of my case for this deserving reliever, but my goodness if Dellin Betances doesn’t make the All-Star team, it would be nothing but a snub.
We’ve seen the 6’8″ reliever’s nastiness in 25 games which is tied for the third-most in the AL, but they have been nothing but effective.
Betances’ ERA is a 1.93 which is 17 among qualified relievers, but his K/9 is at an astronomical 17.74 which ranks first in all of major league baseball thanks to the fact that he strikes out 52% of the batters he has faced.
His xFIP is second among relievers (only behind Andrew Miller) while opponents are hitting .179 off the righty. I’m, quite honestly, not sure what other statistics could convince the common baseball folk that Betances deserves his second consecutive All-Star appearance.
Many have heard about his pure filth but it’s time that on a baseball stage like the midsummer classic that the whole world gets to see it live, as he did not pitch in last year’s game.
VERDICT:
Betances gets a first-class plane ticket to take part in the 2016 All-Star game.
Starlin Castro
Starlin Castro has been nothing but a bonafide All-Star for the New York Yankees but as an All-Star for the American League? He may fall short.
“Darlin’ Starlin” has the second most home runs on the team (7), has driven in the second most RBI (21), and has the second highest slugging percentage (.425).
Beyond the numbers, he has managed to make all Yankees’ fans angry about the departure of Robinson Cano, as they finally have a formidable second baseman.
However, competition in the AL at that position is way too large for Castro to emerge as the lead dog or even a reserve.
Cano, Jose Altuve, Ian Kinsler, Jason Kipnis, and more rank above him in batting average as well as most offensive catagories meaning there are more deserving second baseman in the AL.
The three-time All-Star ranks eighth in homers but sits 19th in batting average (.253), 23rd in OBP (.287), 22nd in WAR (.1), and ranks dead last in the AL in BsR which turns stolen bases, caught stealings, and other base running plays (taking extra bases, being thrown out on the bases, etc) into runs above and below average.
VERDICT:
Sorry Yankee fans, Castro’s name will not be called during the pre-game ceremonies in San Diego. To revisit the Cano comment, his name will likely be called so neglecting his departure may not be so straightforward, yet.
Carlos Beltran
Carlos Beltran is the most productive hitter in the New York Yankees’ lineup but is it sufficient enough for him to earn his ninth All-Star appearance?
The 39-year old right fielder leads the Bronx Bombers with 12 home runs, 26 runs, 31 RBI, and a .537 SLG%. When compared to the rest of the American League, he ranks second in home runs (12), tenth in hits (46), first in doubles (12), and his slugging percentage sits in second place among AL outfielders.
So, he’s arguably the MVP of his team right now and ranking among the top outfielders in the game (offensively) while conceivably being in his final season in baseball.
Unfortunately for Beltran, it’s going to come down to the fans voting and I just don’t envision many baseball fans casting their ballot with Beltran’s name in. Especially when he’s going up against fan favorites like Jose Bautista and Josh Reddick.
VERDICT:
Despite the competition with outfielders in the AL, Beltran will make a reserve spot featuring an at-bat in a ballpark in which he has played 23 games at.
Andrew Miller
If it were up to me, I’d send “Run-DMC” out there in the first three innings but sadly for my fantasy world, that won’t happen but Andrew Miller surely warrants a roster spot in this year’s All-Star game as he, like Betances, does nothing but separate himself from the crowd.
“Miller Time” is a scary time for the opposition as he owns a 0.87 ERA (seventh-best), a 16.55 K/9 ratio (second-best), a 0.87 xFIP (first in the AL), and has stranded the second-most runners on base (98.4%). The opposition is also batting .162 against
Lefties are also batting .158 off Miller thanks in large part to his swooping slider that is the sixth most valuable pitch in all of baseball.
I habitually don’t let the numbers do all the ranting, but it’s considerably troublesome to talk over them on this one.
VERDICT:
Miller joins his fellow teammate, Dellin Betances in San Diego. I would make a case for Aroldis Chapman but his 30-game suspension tampers with his ability to earn a roster spot.
It’s not breaking news that some players on the New York Yankees roster have played well below their expectations (which is All-Star caliber play) but there are still some guys that are among the best in the league.
Do you agree with the players that ESNY would send to this year’s showcase of the best talents in the game of baseball? Who would you make a case for? Let your voice be heard and get the conversation going in the comments below.