Jul 188 min read

Diamond Report: Halfway

We have hit the final weekend of baseball as Tuesday's All-Star game marked the end of an electric first-half. The stove may be hot, but the food is just starting to cook as we get the All-Star game, trade-deadline, and final half of ball next to fill the course. Only four teams look wounded in regard to the playoff race. The AL has all but two clubs within ten games of the Wild-Card; the NL has all but two. Plus some deadlock award races are really heatin' up. We are in for one helluva ride on the diamond.

The report is in; time to read all about it as we prep for the 2nd-half. I'll drop my personal All-Star rosters, current award leaders at the halfway point, and predictions, plus headlines for the tail-end of the campaign. Lets kick things off with talkin' the All-Star game and rosters.

It's never easy deciding on All-Star squads. If it's easy, than that means there is little star-power depth across the circuit. I like when it's difficult. I sure had the difficulty bar raised this go around, especially with the NL roster, deciding on the AL pitching, and who to start at short for the AL. Some choices you may not agree with; many you likely will. I feel I do better justice than MLB and their silly fan votes (no offense..?). I also follow the rules and outlines of the format. Before I drop my rosters; lets tackle some quick headlines.

Fan voting will never be a good thing in my eyes. Nothing regarding fan voting will change my mind. Every year, at least one house-hold name makes the All-Star game over a handful of more deserving cats. Elly De La Cruz is this year's popularity vote. No player who leads the big leagues in fielding errors, strikeouts at-the-plate, and ranks <200 in defensive WAR is an All-Star. Errors and Ks are the two categories you can't lead the league in. If Elly didn't have that baggage; his claim in the All-Star game is warranted.

We all know about the stolen bases. Elly's 45 snags rank him in the top-20 for most before the All-Star game in MLB history. His offensive WAR, stolen bases, and runs give him a case... but not with the Ks and Errors on the resume. I thought rookie Masyn Winn (STL), Lindor (NYM), McMahon (COL), and Reynolds (PIT) were all more deserving reserves. Cincy had one All-Star selection on my roster; that being starting pitcher Hunter Greene.

Greene has progressed in a massive way in year-3. He is currently ranked 6th in pitching WAR, 9th in Ks, and has only given up 78 hits in 110+ innings pitched. Out of the 20 pitchers with 110+ innings pitched thus far, just Greene and AL Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal has less than 80 given up. Greene is an All-Star... and the only Reds players to claim a nod off my ballot.

Gunnar Henderson & Bobby Witt Jr. make SS valuable

Hands down the toughest decision for me was who to start at shortstop for the AL. Gunnar Henderson and Bobby Witt Jr. forced one tough call. Number two and three in my current AL MVP voting and now I had to decide who deserves a starting ASG nod more. Not fun! Both guys had a major case. Most of April, May, and June I had Witt over Gunnar without much ponder. That all changed by the time we got to July and to now. I have since changed my mind... but still feel unsure on the decision.

Henderson elevated his batting average and OBP as he scorched up the month of June at the plate, logging in a hit in 24 of his 28 games played; including 10 multi-hit games. That stretch made things ultra-tight. Witt currently leads the league in Hits and ranks 4th in total bases; 2nd in batting average; 2nd in triples; and 2nd in runs. Henderson? He leads the league in runs & WAR (huge note), and ranks 2nd in homers; 3rd in slugging %; and 4th in OPS. If you know me well, you figure I roll with Witt because of the batting average, but it's hard to shy away from Gunnar's power stats and value numbers.

I still feel iffy, quite 50-50 on Gunnar over Witt. It came to the point where I just needed to pick one. This debate was just for an All-Star nod! Surely I will be put back in this seat in the next couple of months as both cats are prepped to build off their mid-season MVP cases. They will each be in the running for the Hank Aaron and All-Silver-Slugging team as well. Close call no doubt, but I'll take Gunnar over Witt in this instance.

The ballot sure had some tough spots; which of course left some snubs and even some forces. Showing both sides of the spectrum. For example, the American League pitching is stacked right now. Major performers across the East, Central, and West. It was tough to fill out the ballot as I felt some guys could face a serious snub. On the flip side, the National League outfield selections made things tough for me in a way I felt forced, due to the lackluster depth across the NL.

Originally, I almost felt obligated to name Yelich as the starting centerfielder to avoid an all-Padres outfield, as Jackson Merrill is right there with Yelich in stats. Yelich has sense gained significant separation, so that's pleasant. Tatis didn't really have any strong cases against him; which is saying a lot with his stats not being anything extraordinary (still very good). Other nominees were Bryan Reynolds (I named a reserve), Alec Burleson (missed cut), Teoscar Hernández (missed cut), and Brenton Doyle (missed cut). Back in the day, you had 10-30 strong cases. It seemed dull when looking at cases this season in regards to the NL outfield. The player depth has gotten better, but not anywhere near where it was. Injuries don't help.

I do feel I dropped the ball on a few. As I feel MLB did with their selections. Beauty of sports opinions, take some, you lose some. Paul Skenes is most def' an All-Star. I left him off my ASG squad because of innings pitched (124th - 66.1) and games started with his early summer call-up. I think I should have selected the rook over Mitch Keller. 9 quality starts in 11 tries with a 3.4 pitching WAR? It can be enough to vote him in, respectfully. I wouldn't have his tail starting the game, but I snubbed Skenes no doubt. Here are the other cats I feel I snubbed after a tough ballot:

Halfway point, so you already know I have my current award races in rotation with cases after cases building. The races are set to raise the bar! Aaron Judge is on a ripping tear at the plate, but has two young-studded phenoms lurking in his rearview mirror with an early career MVP making their chops dry for some saliva. Hank Aaron has major contendership, psh and the arms race? Yeah, that's going to leave some blood.

Both Cy Young awards have strong cases building with 4-5 guys in each league having a foot in the race. The leaders sit like Aaron Judge atop the AL MVP race- comfy with SOME cushion, but getting annoyed with the lights in the rearview gettin' closer and brighter. I feel Skubal (AL) has the most separation amongst the two Cy Young races; compared to the NL's current leader, Chris Sale. That NL race is going to be down to the wire the entirety of the 2nd-half if the current racers remain healthy on the bump. The race for Reliever of the Year will be the same ordeal.

The rookie of the year races have created a different story. The NL had a strong 5-headed race going until Paul Skenes decided to make himself known. Now it's Merrill and Skenes with Skenes ready to take the baton and dip to the finish line. The AL race is... interesting to say the least. All up in the air, but Mason Miller and Luis Gil should be the front-runners. Here are all my current award leaders as we are set to start the 2nd-half of ball:

The 1st-Half delivered the goods and did it's job: get the stove hot for the 2nd-Half. The stove is ultra-hot. The standings look prepped and ready to go, to bring us major drama and joy. The award races are as advertised. The only thing we need now is for the injury bug to die and the trade-deadline to drop nukes. ASG have you distracted? Yes! We still have the trade-deadline; which is right around the corner. Only twelve more days for teams to hit the trade market.

With the injury bug doing what it's doing- we could see an electric deadline. Dodgers rotation is beyond beat up. James Paxton and Gavin Stone are the final two remaining, and Yamamoto just had his stay on the shelf get extended more long-term. Dodgers will have to be players at the deadline to get some arms in the rotation. That, or they find some compound-V to inject into Ohtani to magically heal his UCL. Bobby Miller's sophomore slump has had far greater negative effects for the Dodgers as Corbin Carroll's has for 'Zona. The deadline will be headlined by top squads bolstering. Philly will surely be active in adding an outfield bat, Dodgers need the pitching, Mariners should absolutely be buyers, and the AL East could get real active. Get the popcorn and put it on stand-by. The noise is coming.

Lets wrap things up with a few predictions for the 2nd-half. We have three divisions with three clubs atop; all within 5 games of the top spot. The NL East is really the only division with significant separation. You could include the NL West, but one bad Dodgers stretch and that division has a whole new picture. All three divisions in the AL are tough to predict the outcomes to. I do have a confident prediction regarding all three... that all three will see more shaking around. The AL West is ready to trademark it; following up last season with another tight three-team race here in this campaign. Can the Guardians and Orioles stay true? Will the NL Central stay consistent?

Those are the questions that have me feeling serious difficulty in predicting. I am nowhere near close to ever betting on either one of those divisions; not with real dough. I don't even want my personal rep to bet on those two divisions. Guardians are playing exceptional, but do we actually look at them as a top 1-2 squad in the AL? As a championship contender? That's a stretch. Can Steven Kwan really keep hitting like Ichiro in the 2nd-half? I am not betting on it. I predict Minnesota to win the AL Central for the 4th time in 6-years. Get those pitchforks, I'll be watching Major League in my Indians gear.

Now the NL Central. Gave me chills there just writing it. The menstrual cycle of divisions. Up and down, up and down. Consistent; inconsistent. Repeat. Milwaukee I have some confidence in. They may just be 4.5 games ahead, but the Brew-Crew is my favorite to repeat as Central champs (would be first repeat champ since 2016-17 Cubs). I don't think it will be easy, however. We are sure to expect more inconsistency... and more noise.

I can envision all four of the Cubs, Reds, Pirates, and Cards going on long win streaks, unfortunately, I also envision them going on long losing skids! Frankly, I love it! Just look at the NL Wild-Card sitch... looks like pure madness! Don't ask me for my predictions there. Not yet, please! My head may explode. Ten teams within 3 or less games!? Mama mia. We are in for one helluva ride folks. Take a peep at how the playoff picture stands if the season were to end today, and get amped for the 2nd-half of ball on the diamond!

Diamond Report: Halfway

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