Chris Davis has had a break-out year this season. By Keith Allison on Flickr, via Wikimedia Commons

It’s about that time again, time for the Major League Baseball All-Star game.

Most professional all-star games aren’t as competitive as the real deal, but generally thats not the case for the MLB’s version of the game. This game actually matters because the winning league earns home-field advantage in the World Series. I, like a lot of fans, disagree with this rule because like any other sport, home field advantage should be based off of record not which league played better in the All Star Game. If that were the case, the Western Conference in the NBA would have had home court advantage six times out of the past ten years. This rule needs to be changed but I don’t see it being changed anytime soon. But for what is it, it makes the game that much more compelling to watch and root on your own teams league.

And if the game is going to decide who gets World Series home field advantage, it is certainly wrong that the fans vote the starting players into the game. It should be based off the best players from each position that get to play in the game not off of bias fan voting. Don’t get me wrong I enjoy putting in my own votes every year but, to be honest, I usually vote for my team’s players who I know will never make the cut.

Here are my starting nine players from each league that should be in the starting lineups for this year’s All Star game next month and some of their stats (as current as June 24th, 12:03am):

American League:

Catcher: Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins (.330, 8 HR, 25 RBI)

First Base: Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles (.336, 27 HR, 70 RBI)

Second Base: Robinson Cano, New York Yankees (.276, 16 HR, 45 RBI)

Shortstop: J.J. Hardy, Baltimore Orioles (.267, 15 HR, 44 RBI)

Third Base: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (.370, 20 HR, 75 RBI)

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox (.316, 16 HR, 55 RBI)

Outfielders:

Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles (.298, 15 HR, 55 RBI)

Mike Trout, Anaheim (not Los Angeles) Angels (.306, 12 HR, 46 RBI)

Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays (.254, 16 HR, 42 RBI)

Starting Pitcher: Clay Buchholz, Boston Red Sox (9-0, 1.71 ERA, 81 K)

National League:

Catcher: Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals (.353, 5 HR, 41 RBI)

First Base: Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks (.306, 19 HR, 65 RBI)

Second Base: Brandon Phillips, Cincinnati Reds (.265, 11 HR, 60 RBI)

Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez, Los Angeles Dodgers (.358, 4 HR, 10 RBI)*

Third Base: David Wright, New York Mets (.309, 12 HR, 41 RBI)

Outfielders:

Carlos Beltran, St. Louis Cardinals (.305, 17 HR, 46 RBI)

Justin Upton, Atlanta Braves (.240, 15 HR, 34 RBI)

Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies (.3004, 21 HR, 57 RBI)*

Starting Pitcher: Matt Harvey, New York Mets (7-1, 2.05 ERA, 121 K)

*Because of injuries to Troy Tulowitzki and Bryce Harper

Much has been made of pitching in baseball over the past few seasons. The game has seen a shift from more dominant power-hitters to more shutdown pitchers since the “steroid era” “ended.”

While there are still many bona fide power hitters in the majors (Miguel Cabrera, Jose Bautista, Matt Kemp, Ryan Braun, Robinson Cano, etc.), building a strong pitching rotation has become more of a prominent priority for successful teams. Just last season (2011), baseball had a pitcher, Justin Verlander, win both the MVP award and the CY Young award in the American League. Pitching has always been important to America’s pastime but now it’s more crucial than ever.

Here is my fourth installment and this time I’m taking my talents to the National League, breaking down each team’s potential starting rotation for the 2013 season with the average Earned Run Average (we know averaging an average isn’t scientifically sound, but we’re doing it anyway…): This time, the spotlight is on the NL East…

With Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Cole Hamels, the Phillies have amassed the best starting rotation in the NL East. By http://www.flickr.com/photos/mel_rowling/ [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

1. Stephen Strasburg (15-6, 3.16 ERA, 197 Strikeouts)
2. Gio Gonzalez (21-8, 2.89 ERA, 207 Strikeouts)
3. Dan Haren (12-13, 4.33 ERA, 142 Strikeouts)
4. Jordan Zimmerman (12-8, 2.94 ERA, 153 Strikeouts)
5. Ross Detwiler (10-8, 3.40 ERA, 105 Strikeouts)

Average Combined 2012 ERA: 3.34

Atlanta Braves:

1. Tim Hudson (16-7, 3.62 ERA, 102 Strikeouts)
2. Kris Medlin (10-1, 1.57 ERA, 120 Strikeouts)
3. Mike Minor (11-10 4.21 ERA, 145 Strikeouts)
4. Paul Maholm (13-11, 3.67 ERA, 140 Strikeouts)
5. Randall Delgado (4-9, 4.37 ERA, 76 Strikeouts)

Average Combined 2012 ERA: 3.49

Philadelphia Phillies:

1. Roy Halladay (11-8, 4.49 ERA, 132 Strikeouts)
2. Cliff Lee (6-9, 3.16 ERA, 207 Strikeouts)
3. Cole Hamels (17-6, 3.05 ERA, 216 Strikeouts)
4. Kyle Kendrick (11-12, 3.90 ERA, 116 Strikeouts)
5. John Lannan (4-1, 4.13 ERA, 17 Strikeouts)

Average Combined ERA: 3.75

New York Mets:

1. Johan Santana (6-9, 4.85 ERA, 111 Strikeouts)
2. Jonathon Niese (13-9, 3.40 ERA, 155 Strikeouts)
3. Dillon Gee (6-7, 4.10 ERA, 97 Strikeouts)
4. Matt Harvey (3-5, 2.73 ERA, 70 Strikeouts)
5. Jenrry Mejia (1-2, 5.63 ERA, 8 Strikeouts)

Average Combined ERA: 4.14

Miami Marlins:

1.  Ricky Nolasco (12-13, 4.48 ERA, 125 Strikeouts)
2.  Henderson Alvarez (9-14, 4.85 ERA, 79 Strikeouts)
3.  Wade LeBlanc (2-5, 3.67 ERA, 43 Strikeouts)
4.  Nathan Eovaldi (4-13, 4.30 ERA, 78 Strikeouts)
5.  Jacob Turner (2-5, 4.42 ERA, 36 Strikeouts)

Average Combined ERA: 4.34

The stats above are from the 2012 season and based off of ERA alone, it shows that the Washington Nationals have the best starting pitching staff. Three teams in this division have sub-4.00 ERAs while the Mets and Marlins are both over it and don’t seem to be contending this season again. But in this division, I think that the team that will have the most improved starting rotation in 2013 will be the Philadelphia Phillies.

While many people would look at the starting rotations and say that the Nationals, not the Phillies would be the best rotation, I say that experience beats young talent in this case. I know that the Phillies had a down year last season but that was also because of all the injuries they had and, toward the end of the season, they started to play a lot better to bring their record to .500. The Braves still have a pretty decent staff, but I hesitate to trust 37 year-old Tim Hudson to stay healthy all season as their number 1. As for the Mets, they traded away the CY Young winner which shows they are in rebuilding mode and the Marlins, well they traded away pretty much every good player they had.

I think that this division race will be a good two-team chase between the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies. The Braves, a capable team, will lose a step after longtime leader and future hall of famer Chipper Jones retired.

With a rejuvenated pitching staff, the Philadelphia Phillies will be the NL East champs, not the Nationals. The Nationals are a very good young team but I think that the Phillies will be back to their normal selves this year and ultimately snatch the division title from them. I’d love to see the Nationals prove me wrong, but I think this is the Phillies’ year.

Harang, who came into the game with an 0-1 record and a 5.95 ERA, became the first Dodger in the franchise’s illustrious history to strike out nine straight batters. He did so with an onset of off speed pitches and corner dashing fast balls— the movement on his pitches had a wicked corner to corner velocity downright unhittable, landing him 13 strikeouts in the outing – the first since Gooden in 86’.

The righty threw 6 1/3 innings, propelling the Dodgers to a 13^th of Friday-like victory. An 8-8 tie ended on four straight walks in the ninth inning.  Andre Ethier strode home to break the tie and I couldn’t help but notice the proximity to the historically supernatural date. Whether or not it consumes me long enough for next year is yet to be seen. But the now 9-1 Dodgers are sure believers as their red hot season continues and the curse of McCourt evaporates slowly to a fuzzy and distant memory.

The Yankees are standing pat on what they currently have, as there hasn’t been a deadline in recent memory where baseball’s top spending franchise has failed to bolster themselves in even the slightest amount.  They were in the Hiroka Kuroda sweepstakes along with the Chicago White Sox, but Kuroda ultimately held the trump card in the form of the no-trade clause built into his contract.

The biggest splash of the deadline had to be the San Francisco Giants acquiring Carlos Beltran from the New York Mets in exchange for the top pitching prospect in their minor league system, Zach Wheeler.  General Manager Brian Sabean was quoted as saying that the team owed the move to their fans, noting that the the Major League Baseball championship-winning window is a small one.

Almost a decade ago, Beltran was traded at the deadline to the Houston Astros from the Kansas City Royals and proceeded to put up the best August and September by a deadline acquisition in recent memory, only rivaled by Manny Ramirez’s late-season clip when he was traded from the Red Sox to the Dodgers a few years ago.  While Beltran isn’t that same player he was even five years ago, he does have the offensive ability to help the anemic Giants offense significantly.

The Atlanta Braves are contenders in the NL East as well as front-runners in the wild card standings.  The addition of Michael Bourn will bring much needed outfield speed at the top of the lineup, something Atlanta has severely lacked in recent years due to the ineffectiveness of Nate McLouth and the trading away of Melky Cabrera.

Ubaldo Jimenez will strengthen the Cleveland Indians’ pitching staff, as they actually have a realistic shot at the playoffs.  You would expect nothing less with a move like this from a team that is having a dream season after more than a decade of futility.  Jimenez hasn’t had his usual dominating season thus far, but his veteran presence and Cy Young-potential talent will bring some much needed stability and leadership to a young clubhouse.

The reigning Senior Circuit champions, the Philadelphia Philles, did not sit on their full house – they decided to try and draw to a straight flush.  The addition of Hunter Pence will help balance an attack that is left-handed heavy, and will only improve an already elite offense.  Getting closer Ryan Madson healthy will be the key to the Phillies running away with the East again, as having a stable finisher is something that is key for a team like Philadelphia, who depends on winning a lot of close, low to middle-scoring, station-to-station, National League-style games.

The Milwaukee Brewers bolstered their bullpen with Francisco Rodriguez, a great backup plan if their young closer, John Axford, happens to falter down the stretch. This move is by far better than anything the St. Louis Cardinals ended up doing at the deadline, and with the Brew Crew already holding a 3.5 game lead over the Cards, they have to be the distinct favorite in the Central as the finish line approaches.

The Pittsburgh Pirates added first baseman Derek Lee in an attempt to inject some run-production with runners in scoring position.  You have to admire the Pirates for being proactive, but their brutal schedule down the stretch coupled with their inexperience makes a playoff berth in the tightly-contested National League Central a prospect that looks to be futile at best.

The Los Angeles Dodgers traded away arguably their top outfield prospect in Trayvon Robinson, who has seen limited action at the major league level while bombing 26 home runs thus far this season in Triple-A.  As a Dodgerfan, this move baffles me, due to the fact that they only received two average minor-league arms and a minor league catcher who has only hit 7 homeruns so far this season in return.

The Dodgers franchise is not only selling out its fans, but now they are starting to even sell out their best players.  The sad fact that one of the greatest and most storied franchises in sports continues to get dragged deeper and deeper through the mud and filth is as disgusting as “owner” Frank McCourt’s existence as a region-wide punchline.  Dodgerfans seem to be almost numb to the debacle as it gets worse and worse.  This is a true testament to how low the franchise has sunk.  But, a brighter day is hopefully around the corner.  What brighter day?  The day that the inevitable happens – McCourt buys a one-way ticket on a flying sourdough bowl of chowder and flys his ass back to New England for good.

Having said that, one should digress this time of year no matter how bad your favorite team happens to be navigating the treacherous waters of the vast sea that is the baseball season. Regardless of the gravity of the moves that are made every trade deadline, the underlying fact always remains – some moves end up resulting in pennants and some moves blow up in a general manager’s face.

Who will end up wearing  the egg and who will end up wearing the ring?  Its about to unfold.