ADBL All-Stars/Mid-Season Awards

Well with the first half almost over, it's time to announce the American and National League representatives for the ADBL All-Star team. Thanks to all those that voted in the polls. After a couple of weeks of voting, here are the results:

American League Starting Line-Up:
Manager: Brian Kandell (DET) - The Tigers Skipper earns the right to manage the AL Squad after taking his Tigers to the ADBL Championship game last season.


Catcher: Alex Avila (NYY) - The Yankee catcher has been one of the season's most pleasant surprises through the first half of the season. He comes into the week hitting a cool .298 with 10 HRs and 46 RBIs along with a very respectable .375 OBP. He edged out Detroit's Victor Martinez to earn the starting honors.

First Base: Mark Teixeira (BOS) - Tex has been among the league leaders in Home Runs (25) and RBIs (65) all season and it is no surprise that he is representing the AL at 1B at this year's Midsummer Classic. Despite the low BA, Tex edged out Tampa's Miguel Cabrera and Detroit's Albert Pujols.


Second Base: Robinson Cano (NYY) - In one of the more lopsided voting results, Robinson Cano received all of the votes and earns the starting nod at 2B for the AL squad. Cano has consistently been among the league leaders at his position all year.


Shortstop: Troy Tulowitzki (NYY) - Tulo gets the starting gig at SS for the AL, edging out Asdrubal Cabrera and Alexei Ramirez.


Third Base: Alex Rodriguez (NYY) - In one of the closer races, A-Rod will start at 3B, beating out the Tigers' Third baseman Adrian Beltre.


Outfield: Matt Kemp (TB), Ryan Braun (BOS), Curtis Granderson (BOS) - The AL boasts a trio of outfielders that can flat out hit the baseball. Kemp, Braun, and Granderson all have a very good mix of power and speed.


Pitchers:
Josh Beckett (BOS)
James Shields (NYY)
Jair Jurrjens (CHW)
Dan Haren (DET)
Felix Hernandez (DET)
Ian Kennedy (LAA)
CJ Wilson (TEX)
Jhoulys Chacin (KC)
David Price (TB)
Joel Hanrahan (CHW)
Brian Wilson (BOS)
Francisco Cordero (CHW)

Reserves:
C/DH Victor Martinez (DET)
1B Miguel Cabrera (TB)
1B Paul Konerko (CHW)
2B Dustin Pedroia (BOS)
SS Asdrubal Cabrera (LAA)
3B Adrian Beltre (DET)
OF Lance Berkman (NYY)
OF Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS)
OF Matt Joyce (TB)
OF Matt Holliday (TEX)

National League Starting Line-Up:
Manager: Archie Adams (COL) - As the Manager of the ADBL champion Rockies, Archie earns the honor of managing the NL ADBL All-Stars.


Catcher: Brian McCann (ATL) - The Braves catcher has been one of the best offensive catchers in baseball this season, coming in as the top rated catcher at his position according to ESPN's Player Rater. No surprise here, although he barely edged out Cincinnati's Miguel Montero, who has had a really nice season thus far.


First Base: Prince Fielder (COL) - The Prince is King among first baseman in the NL, as he edges out Adrian Gonzalez (ATL) and Joey Votto (CIN). Tough to go wrong with any of those guys at first.


Second Base: Rickie Weeks (LAD) - Everyone knows Weeks has got the talent to be a really special player, but he has failed to stay on the field this last couple of seasons. So far however, the Dodgers 2B has stayed healthy and is putting up really good numbers at second base, easily earning the nod over Brandon Phillips of the Reds.


Shortstop: Jose Reyes (SF) - The speedy shortstop earns the nod over Starlin Castro of the D-Backs. Reyes has had a MVP caliber first half, putting up ridiculous numbers including 15 triples. However, Reyes will now have to deal with a hamstring pull. Hopefully, it is nothing to serious for the Giants' SS.



Third Base: Evan Longoria (CIN) - Despite missing a large chunk of the first half, Longoria earns the nod in what has become a terribly shallow position in baseball.


Outfield: Jose Bautista (PHI), Jay Bruce (LAD), Andrew McCutchen (CIN) - Another star studded outfield here in the NL. I felt I had to give the starting job to McCutchen to somehow make up for the MLB snubbing him off the All-Star team.


Pitchers:
Justin Verlander (CIN)
Tim Lincecum (CIN)
Clayton Kershaw (COL)
Roy Halladay (ATL)
Cliff Lee (ATL)
Cole Hamels (PHI)
CC Sabathia (SF)
Jered Weaver (LAD)
Gio Gonzalez (LAD)
Craig Kimbrel (PHI)
Heath Bell (CIN)
Mariano Rivera (COL)


Reserves:
C Miguel Montero (CIN)
1B Adrian Gonzalez (ATL)
1B Joey Votto (CIN)
2B Brandon Phillips (CIN)
SS Starlin Castro (ARI)
3B Chipper Jones (ATL)
OF Carlos Gonzalez (LAD)
OF Justin Upton (ARI)
OF Josh Hamilton (PHI)
OF Chris Young (ARI)

Mid-season Awards
AL Manager of the Year - Bob Boye (BOS) - The Red Sox have gotten off to a really good start this season, sitting atop the AL East. The Red Sox also have the best record in the ADBL with an 11-1-1 mark.
NL Manager of the Year - Jason Senior (PHI) - The Phillies have been the class of the NL for most of this season, and are doing it with a really balanced approach.
AL MVP - Ryan Braun (BOS) - As the best player on the best team so far this year, Braun has to be the first half favorite to win the MVP award in the AL. However, there are a lot of candidates that can make some noise in the second half of the season. At this point, the race is wide open, but Braun gets a slight edge at this point because of his team's current position in the standings.
NL MVP: Jose Bautista (PHI) - Again, the NL MVP race is wide open, but Bautista's ridiculous stat line and the Phillies seat atop the NL East gives him the edge over the rest of the field.
AL Cy Young: James Shields (NYY) - I'm going to give the slight edge at this point to James Shields because of his consistency this year. He has pitched really well and is among the league leaders in many of the most important pitching statistics. He also leads the AL in complete games with 6. I had a hard time choosing between Shields, Beckett, and Jurrjens, and it really is a toss up at this point. The second half of the season will determine who walks away with the AL CY.
NL Cy Young: Justin Verlander (CIN) - Verlander has been straight up filthy this year. He leads the league in wins, strikeouts, innings pitched, and has a ridiculous 0.86 WHIP and a equally shiny 2.32 ERA. However, don't count out Halladay, Lee, Hamels, CC, and Weaver. The NL boast some of the best pitchers in the game at this point.
AL Rookie of the Year: Jeremy Hellickson (BOS) - J-Hell is the early favorite to win the AL ROY, as he is among the league leaders in many of the pitching categories among rookie pitchers. Keep an eye on Angels 1B Eric Hosmer in the ROY race as well.
NL Rookie of the Year: Michael Pineda (COL) - While Hellickson may be among the rookie leaders in many of the pitching stats, Pineda leads most rookie pitchers in a lot of the important statistical components. However, it will be interesting to see how this voting turns out with Craig Kimbrel on his heels.

Mid-Season Wrap-Up

As we near the half-way point of the 2011 ADBL season, teams are taking a hard look at their prospects for the playoffs and their prospects for a championship. With each team in a different situation, let's go team by team as we check the pulse of each team in the ADBL.

AL West

Los Angeles Angels (8-4-0):

How have they climbed up to first? By being competent to good in each category. They're middle of the pack in virtually every offensive category, and, while their starting pitching hasn't been great, their relief pitching has been fantastic, as they lead the league in saves with 85 (20 more than the second place team, the Reds). With the Detroit Tigers only a game out of first after their win over the Angels, I suspect some deals to be done especially for their starting pitching. A guy like Gavin Floyd, who's been made available by Arizona, could be a cheap target for them.

Detroit Tigers (7-5-0):

The Tigers started out fast, racing out to a 3-0-0 start, but have gone about .500 since. Their offense has been a key part in their resurgence, but what looks to be their strength going forward is their starting pitching. Perhaps no team in the league has had a more consistent starting rotation so far this season being near the top in every category with the exception of wins, a category that their pitchers have often little say in. The staff got even stronger when the Tigers traded for star pitcher Dan Haren from Arizona for prospects Christian Freidrich and Cory Luebke, as well as relief pitcher Jonny Venters. The Tigers look to be dominating the pitching side of the ball as they throw out Haren, Felix Hernandez, Chris Carpenter, Colby Lewis, Shaun Marcum, and Jason Vargas. They should be strong contenders.

Texas Rangers (5-7-0):

The Rangers are stuck in the awkward spot in the standings. While they aren't out of it (they're only 3 games back of the Angels), no one would blame them for selling some of their parts. The outlook isn't bright for them, however. Texas is in the bottom of third in nearly every category, *the one exception being Holds, where they're middle of the pack) and their roster doesn't seem to be made for contention. It might be time to start getting ready for 2012, Rangers.

Kansas City Royals (1-11-0):

The Royals have been downright awful. Their owner seems content to not set their lineup, and it's reflecting in the standings. The Royals will be sellers, looking to start a rebuilding process that could be long and painful.

AL East

Boston Red Sox (11-0-1):

The only undefeated team left in the ADBL, the Red Sox have been a pleasant surprise. Their offense, more specifically, their slugging has been a revelation and they lead the league in homers and OPS. Their offense has been complemented by a fantastic starting rotation which leads the ADBL in K's, Quality Starts, and Wins. If the Red Sox do have any holes, it's their lack of depth on the relief front. They currently have 3 relievers on the DL, and that may be a focus of trades as transactions begin to heat up.

Tampa Bay Rays (6-6-0):

The Rays have done surprisingly well considering the way their team was built last year. The Rays, one of the best regular season teams last year, had a slew of 1-year contracts, which resulted in them losing some key players. And with the Red Sox doing as well as they have, it's been tough for the Rays to make any headway in the AL East. Depending on how their owner feels about the team, they could decide to be either buyers or sellers, but I think this team has a chance for the wild card with their good pitching. What they could use is some help in their bullpen. Another closer like a Kevin Gregg type could really help this team win a valuable saves category.

New York Yankees (5-6-1):

This team has strong talent all over their roster, which makes a sub-.500 first half very perplexing. I don't think this team needs any tinkering asides from some relief help, because there are enough playmakers on both the offensive and pitching side of the ball to win games at a higher clip.

Chicago White Sox (4-8-0):

The White Sox have struggled this season, and it looks like they have already begun trying to unload some valuable players. Both of their strong first basemen (Ryan Howard and Paul Konerko) are being shopped, and could be dealt for some strong value. They could use some starting pitching help, and that could certainly be a focus as returns for the slugging first basemen.

NL East

Philadelphia Phillies (10-2-0):

The leader of what many call the best division in the ADBL, the Phillies have been great so far this season. With a strong offensive game led by Jose Bautista that's second in total bases and homers, they have been able to be the leaders of the National League so far. They look to be one of the main contenders for a championship, but aren't without a flaw. Their starting pitching is very weak, and not indicative of a team that has what it needs to win some key pitching categories. They could be players for cheap starting pitching.

Cincinnati Reds (9-3-0):

While the Phillies have been dominating, the Reds have quietly put themselves in position to take the NL East. We know they have strong hitting, but their starting pitching has been even better at times, and their bullpen is nothing to scoff at either. What the Reds could use, however, is some help figuring out a way to get relievers not on the Oakland A's.

Atlanta Braves (7-5-0):

Unfortunately, being the NL East makes life tough for a team like the Braves who could be winning the NL West, and be in position to win the AL West. With their fantastic pitching, the Braves should be in a better place right now (instead of hovering above .500) but poor

contributions from guys like Adam Dunn and Alex Rios, and injuries to key players such as Rafael Furcal, Derek Jeter, and Martin Prado have derailed them from what seemed to be a breakout year. There's still time to get healthy and start hitting, but they will have to beat out teams like the Reds and Phillies if they want to improve their playoff seeding.

New York Mets (1-11-0):

The outlook is bleak for the "other" team in New York. This team has pieces to move, such as B.J. Upton and Todd Helton, but many of their moveable pieces have either lost value, or lose value every day. The Mets do have some good things on the way, however, with Bryce Harper mashing in the minors, and Gerrit Cole just selected in this year's First Year Player Draft.

NL West

San Francisco Giants (6-5-1):

The Giants, surprise leaders of the very weak NL West, have done this basically without hitting home runs, and with one of the worst OPS ratings in the league. What the have done to counteract this lack of extra-base hits is gotten on base a lot, stolen a lot of bases, and won some key pitching categories. The Giants could be players in the trade market if they want to be, but this could be a roster that makes few changes.

Los Angeles Dodgers (6-6-0):

At an even .500 the Dodgers somehow find themselves half a game back of the NL West lead. While the Giants have done their damage with pitching and singles, the Dodgers have done their's with homers, and lots of them. The Dodgers are currently tied for second for the league lead in homers with 101, and their roster seems clearly tailored for power, so look for that trend to continue. While their pitching hasn't been great, the Dodgers pitchers have gone deep enough into games to give themselves chances to get wins and rack of strikeouts, a couple of categories the Dodgers have relied on to win matchups.

Arizona Diamondbacks (4-7-1):

So far the big movers and shakers, the Diamondbacks saw their surprising early NL West lead disintegrate as their pitchers stopped getting wins and their hitters stopped hitting. The Diamondbacks, however, could have the youngest roster in the league with virtually every player on the team called up either last year or this year, meaning they could be a team on the rise. They're only 2 games out, so don't completely rule them out as buyers, even though their recent activity suggests otherwise.

Colorado Rockies (3-7-2):

How the mighty have fallen, right? The defending ADBL champs have never gotten in a groove and have stumbled all season long, never really recapturing the playoff form and taking the next step we all expected them to take. They haven't gotten enough from guys like Dan Uggla and Rick Porcello, but even bad performances from those guys alone isn't enough to take a whole team down. The Rockies just doesn't seem to have it this year.