2007 MLB All-Star rosters announced
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NEW YORK (TICKER) -- A changing of the guard is occuring in the National League, while the veterans in the American League are not quite ready to step aside.
With an average age of just over 24 and a combined total - including this season - of eight All-Star appearances, the NL infield is in stark contrast to its counterparts in the AL, who average over 32 years of age and total 38 mid-summer classics.
The veteran presence on the NL side will come from two outfielders who were voted on by the fans - Ken Griffey, Jr. and Barry Bonds. The 42-year-old Bonds will make his 14th All-Star appearance in front of a hometown crowd in San Francisco.
"This is the best one and this will probably be my last two so it will be kind of awesome," said Bonds, who is five home runs shy of tying Hank Aaron's all-time mark of 755. "I'm surprised. I thought I played good enough to make the team but I didn't think I would start but this is great.
"I'm having a big ol' party Monday (July 9). it's going to be fun. I get to host it here in San Francisco and I can't say thanks enough to the fans here in San Francisco."
Bonds was running fourth in the fan voting as late as last week, but leaped over the Chicago Cubs' Alfonso Soriano to save NL manager Tony La Russa the pressure of having to choose whether or not Bonds stayed home.
"We discussed Bonds," La Russa said. "Our staff got together, if the players or fans hadn't voted him in we would have probably picked him. I'm not surprised the fans or players voted him in. You can make the case he's San Francisco's best player."
The 37-year-old Griffey was the NL's leading vote-getter, the 13th time the fans have voted him in as a starter. The resurgent outfielder ranks third in the NL after clubbing his 22nd homer of the season on Sunday.
[[Russell Martin] of the Los Angeles Dodgers will make his All-Star debut behind the plate after getting the nod from the fans. The 24-year-old Martin will become the first Canadian-born catcher in All-Star Game history.
Forming the left side of the NL infield will be New York Mets' teammates Jose Reyes at shortstop and David Wright at third base, each of whom will be going to the game for the second year in a row.
On the right side will be 23-year-old first baseman Prince Fielder from the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley, who will draw the grandfather jokes among the infielders at the ripe old age of 28.
"I'm excited to represent the Phillies and represent the National League," Utley said. "Last year, I had a great time and it went by pretty fast. This year, I might slow it down a bit."
The New York hold on the left side of the infield extends to the AL as well, as Alex Rodriguez - the leading vote-getter - will make the start at third base and Derek Jeter gets the nod at shortstop. The two veterans have a combined 19 All-Star appearances.
"We appreciate it," Jeter said. "Anyone that says they don't, they're lying to you. It's an honor. It makes you feel good."
Ivan Rodriguez will represent the reigning AL champion Detroit Tigers by making his 14th appearance at the Midsummer Classic, starting for the 12th time.
"Every time you get selected for the team its like the first time. Not too many guys can make that roster," Ivan Rodriguez said. "It's always a pleasure and honor for me."
Ivan Rodriguez highlights a list of five Tigers headed to San Francisco, with second baseman Placido Polanco and outfielder Magglio Ordonez set to join him in the starting lineup. Carlos Guillen will back up Jeter at short and Justin Verlander was among the 11 pitchers selected.
"What I'm most happy about is that I didn't have to pick any Tigers, not that I wouldn't have," Detroit manager Jim Leyland said. "They were picked by the fans or the players, so no can say I stacked the team."
The Boston Red Sox will send five as well, with David Ortiz rounding out the veteran infield by making his fourth appearance at first base. He will be joined by third baseman Mike Lowell, outfielder Manny Ramirez and pitchers Jonathan Papelbon and Josh Beckett.
Both Detroit and Boston will have a chance to add to their stable of All-Stars by the time the game starts. Tigers starter Jeremy Bonderman and Red Sox reliever Hideki Okajima are among five players fighting for a roster spot via the Final Vote, which is decided by the fans.
"I'm proud of them and proud for our organization," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. "We are going to be well-represented as we should be. Regardless of the last five or six days, we have one of the best records in baseball. We have a lot of good players and I hope we get a sixth, Okajima. If I know our fans, and the adoration they seem to have for Okajima, I bet he'll get a lot of votes."
One of the most unlikely All-Stars is the lone representative of the Toronto Blue Jays, Alex Rios, who spent weeks in the hospital during the second half of last season with a life-threatening staph infection.
The 26-year-old outfielder has bounced back to hit .290 this season and leads a powerful Toronto lineup with 17 home runs.
"It's a great honor," Rios said. "There are a lot of great players on the All-Star team and to be among them is exciting."
Canadian Justin Morneau also overcame a scary injury to earn his first All-Star nod. The reigning Al MVP bruised a lung slamming into Florida catcher Miguel Olivo on June 22 and spent several days in a Florida hospital room before rejoining the Minnesota Twins last Thursday. He will serve as the lone backup to Ortiz in San Francisco.
The first-place Brewers, who have paced the NL Central for virtually the entire season, will send four representatives to the game, with shortstop J.J Hardy, righthander Ben Sheets and closer Francisco Cordero joining Fielder on the squad.
"Nobody in spring training was touting the Brewers," Cordero said. "Nobody thought we would have a great year, it's a special honor to go to the game with three teammates and represent the city of Milwaukee."
"The game is for the fans but you play it for the respect of your teammates and your peers," Sheets said. "It's great to be chosen by the other players, it's a special feeling."
The NL East-leading Mets add Carlos Beltran to the starting lineup in center field along with closer Billy Wagner.
"It's a special opportunity for to share the things that you do of the field with the other players," Beltran said. "Just to have the opportunity to play on the same club with Griffey and Bonds, it's a dream come true for me. I'm going to enjoy it as much as I can and try to represent the New York Mets."
The NL will trot out eight first-timers next Tuesday, with Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels, Dodgers righthander Takashi Saito, Arizona Diamondbacks closer Jose Valverde, Phillies center fielder Aaron Rowand and Diamondbacks second baseman Orlando Hudson joining Hardy, Martin and Fielder.
The AL boasts eight newcomers as well. Polanco and Morneau are joined by pitchers Dan Haren from Oakland, the Angels' John Lackey, the Royals' Gil Meche, Seattle's J.J. Putz, and Beckett and Verlander.
