| 05 July 2011
With the seemingly rare prolonged success from the Nats, doesn’t it feel a tad bit odd that only one Washington Nationals player will be representing the organization in Phoenix for the All-Star game?
Tyler Clippard has earned his due with his staggering strikeout ratio and bluntly his untamed pitching delivery. Believe it or not, managers and players remember facing Clippard because he isn’t as monotonous as most of your everyday relief pitchers.
As reliable as Clippard has been, did he deserve the honor over the following Nationals?
Jordan Zimmermann: 5-7, 2.82 ERA, 76 K’s, 1.10 WHIP
Why he deserved it: Zimmermann is sixth in the NL in ERA and is just starting to peak. He gave up a mere four earned runs during six June starts, producing five would-be wins for the Nats.
Why he didn’t: Usually pitchers with a sub .500 record won’t make it as an All-Star. Zimmermann’s run support average (4.8) is second worst on the team and 11th worst in the NL.
Who could he have replaced: Jonny Venters, setup man for the Atlanta Braves. Is it really necessary to have two setup men?
Danny Espinosa: .243, 15 HR’s, 48 RBI’s, .466 Slugging
Why he deserved it: He’s got the lead in home runs for all second basemen in both leagues. Espinosa overcame a dreadful April at the plate by hitting.274 in June and collected six doubles. His defense has him in the Gold Glove conversation and many have attributed his confidence in the field to helping out Ian Desmond’s once woeful habits.
Why he didn’t: His average needs some work but he was likely snubbed because he is a rookie. The last rookie infielder to make the National League All-Star roster was Dan Uggla in 2006. Check out the full rookie list here.
Who could he have replaced: ESPN’s David Schoenfield points out that Espinosa has a better stat line than Brandon Phillips. Espinosa’s exclusion was the biggest snub on this list in my opinion.
Drew Storen: 5-2, 2.70 ERA, 20 Saves, 32 K’s, 0.99 WHIP
Why he deserved it: I interpret blown saves on whether the team ended up losing the game. In all three of Storen’s “meltdowns” the Nationals ended up prevailing. So that stat doesn’t hurt him in my book.
Why he didn’t: He’s only 10th in the NL for saves. Nationals fans find him deserving because Storen is sort of a spokesman for the franchise. He has assumed a leadership role at such a young age that he has garnered respect that is normally reserved for seasoned veterans.
Who he could have replaced: No one. Don’t worry though, there are plenty of more potential All-Star appearances headed Storen’s way throughout this decade.
Mike Morse: .299, 15 HR’s, 46 RBI’s, .538 Slugging
Why he deserves it: When the Nationals were baseball’s hottest team in June, Morse was its hottest player. Morse didn’t become an everyday player for the Nats until late May. And similar to Espinosa, he’s been able to completely disregard stumbling out of the gates in April.
Why he doesn’t: There isn’t one reason. He is one of the scariest batters in the league, and is someone most AL pitchers would fear late in an All-Star game. The Nationals deserve two All-Stars this year. The impact Morse has had in the middle of this lineup is superior to Todd Helton, Shane Victorino and Andre Either, the other offensive candidates for the NL fan vote.
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