Paul Goldschmidt – lumber, leader and speed – leads BBRT’s NL All Star ballot.<\/p><\/div>\n

First Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Paul Goldschmidt \u2013 Diamondbacks<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Easy choice here, Goldschmidt brings it all to the ball park \u2013 average, power, speed and defense. His line through July 2 – a league leading .352 average, with 20 home runs, 65 RBI and 15 stolen bases. And, of course, there is that Gold Glove (2013 defense).<\/p>\n

Tidbit: As of July 1, Goldschmidt led the NL in average (.352), runs scored (56), walks (63), intentional walks (18) and on-base percentage (.468). \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Second Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Dee Gordon \u2013 Marlins<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Might have gotten a little more offense from the other second sackers in contention for the BBRT vote \u2013 but Gordon\u2019s 26 stolen bases stole this vote.\u00a0 And, as of July 2, he was hitting .345 \u2013 with an NL-best 114 hits. Other candidates I considered were the Cardinals\u2019 Kolten Wong (.287-9-36, with six steals) and the Giants\u2019 Joe Panik (.316-6-30, with three steals).<\/p>\n

Tidbit: It\u2019s troubling to note that Gordon\u2019s average has dropped each month this season. He hit .418 in April; .393 in May; and .304 in June. Still his hot start earned the nod here.<\/em><\/p>\n

Third Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Nolan Arenado \u2013 Rockies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The 24-year-old Arenado looks to have many All Star games ahead of him.\u00a0 This year\u2019s .287-24-68 (he leads all of MLB in RBI) line enabled him to edge out the Reds\u2019 Todd Frazier (.283-25-54). Frazier does have eight steals to none for Arenado, but Arenado has won the NL Gold Glove at third base in both his previous MLB seasons. BBRT likes players who can flash \u201clumber and leather.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tidbit: Arenado hits righties and lefties equally well. \u00a0This season, through July 2, Arenado was hitting .287 versus right-handers and .288 versus southpaws.<\/em><\/p>\n

Shortstop<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Troy Tulowitzki \u2013 Rockies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Tulo is hitting .319-8-41 and that\u2019s a lot of offense from the shortstop position.\u00a0 Still picking Tulowitzki over Andrelton Simmons of the Braves (.269-3-29) was a close call. Simmons, after all, may be the best infield defender on the planet \u2013 and won a Gold Glove in each of his first two full MLB seasons (2013-14). A little better batting average or a touch more speed on the bases (Simmons has one stolen base in three attempts) probably would have swung my vote.<\/p>\n

Tidbit: Simmons may be garnering the \u201cglove-work\u201d headlines now, but before Simmons hit the big leagues, Tulowitzki had picked up a pair of Gold Gloves at shortstop (2010-11).<\/em><\/p>\n

Outfield<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Bryce Harper \u2013 Nationals<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Giancarlo Stanton \u2013 Marlins<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Sterling Marte \u2013 Pirates<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The first two votes were relatively easy \u2013 Harper (.339-24-58) and Stanton (.265-27-67) can both carry a team \u2013 and have 51 home runs and have a 125 RBI between them. They\u2019ll give the NL offense some real punch. (Stanton\u2019s 27 dingers lead all of MLB, as does Harper\u2019s .705 slugging percentage.)<\/p>\n

Picking Starling Marte for the third spot added some speed without sacrificing power. Marte\u2019s .288-13-48, with 16 steals, edges his teammate Andrew McCutchen (.295-9-47, with five steal)s \u2013 but barely. This is another case, where, if I was setting up a team for the long haul, I\u2019d probably take McCutchen, but Marte earned my vote for this All Star squad. (Of course, with Stanton\u2019s recent hand injury, McCutchen would also make the BBRT All Star starting line-up). And, how can you not vote for a guy named Starling?<\/p>\n

Others in the running, but not that close, were the Dodgers\u2019 Joc Pederson and the Reds’\u00a0Billy Hamilton \u2013 one for exciting power (rookie Pederson\u2019s 20 homers, but .243 average with 95 strikeouts), one for super-exciting speed (Hamilton\u2019s 40 steals, with a .230 average). Still, batting south of .250 kept them behind my three choices.<\/p>\n

Tidbit(s): Bryce Harper hit 22 MLB home runs as a teenager, the most very by a teenie-bopper in the NL and second only to Boston Red Sox\u2019 Tony Conigliaro\u2019s 24 dingers before age 20. Giancarlo Stanton has hit five of the ten longest 2015 MLB home runs (through July 2) according to ESPN\u2019s Home Run Tracker. Starling Marte hit a home run on the first pitch he ever saw in the major leagues<\/em><\/p>\n

_____________________________________________________________<\/p>\n

AMERICAN LEAGUE<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Catcher<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Steve Vogt \u2013 A\u2019s<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The A\u2019s Steve Vogt is having a breakout season at age 30 \u2013 hitting .290 with 13 home runs and 53 RBI through July 2. He edges out the Blue Jays\u2019 Russell Martin (.262-12-38) and the Yankees\u2019 Brian McCann (.265-12-49). Besides those two veterans already have 10 All Star appearances between. Give the new guy a chance to shine.<\/p>\n

Tidbit:\u00a0 With runners in scoring position (through July 2), Vogt is hitting .365 with 7 home runs and 46 RBI in 74 at bats.<\/em><\/p>\n

First Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Miguel Cabrera \u2013Tigers<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

If two consecutive MVP Awards and a Triple Crown aren\u2019t an automatic All Star vote, what is?\u00a0 Perhaps, Miguel Cabrera\u2019s .345-15-53 line through July 2. I did consider Albert Pujols\u2019 AL-leading 24 home runs, but Miggy\u2019s all-around game is better.<\/p>\n

Tidbit: Miguel Cabrera has finished in the top five in MVP voting in seven of his 13 MLB seasons.<\/em><\/p>\n

Second Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Jason Kipnis \u2013 Indians<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Kipnis earned the BBRT vote with a league-leading .347 average (and league-leading 108 hits), six home runs, 35 RBI and ten steals through July 2 \u2013 but this was one of the toughest calls in the balloting process.<\/p>\n

Also in the running were the Twins\u2019 Brian Dozier, with 16 home runs, 40 RBI and an MLB-best 61 runs scored through July 2; the Astros\u2019 Jose Altuve (.298-7-33, with an AL-leading 23 steals); and the Red Sox\u2019 Dustin Pedroia (.306-9-33).<\/p>\n

Tidbit: Kipnis also leads the AL with 26 doubles.<\/em><\/p>\n

Third Base<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Manny Machado \u2013 Orioles<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

If I could split a vote, it might be here. Josh Donaldson and Manny Machado are that close. The basic line: Donaldson .300-19-52; Machado .302-16-44.\u00a0 So, why give the edge to Machado?\u00a0 An eleven steals to three edge, and a one Gold Glove to none edge. Once again, BBRT respects the combination of \u201cleather and lumber\u201d \u2013 add a touch of speed and you get my vote.<\/p>\n

Tidbit: Machado hit .365 with eight home runs and 22 RBI this June.<\/em><\/p>\n

Shortstop<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Xander Bogaerts \u2013 Red Sox<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

This vote could have gone to Bogaerts (.297-3-35, with four steals); the Blue Jays\u2019 Jose Reyes (.272-4-27, with ten steals); or Jose Iglesias of the Tigers (.320-1-11, with nine steals). Let\u2019s give a nod to the youngster \u2013 get someone in the lineup whose name starts with \u2018X\u201d – and give the forlorn Red Sox nation something to cheer about.<\/p>\n

Tidbit: In 2013, Bogaerts was the USA Today<\/strong> Minor League Player of the Year after hitting .297 with 15 home runs at AA and AAA.<\/em><\/p>\n