Baseball announced their All Star rosters and – without much
surprise – the Twins
delegate to the game in Arizona is Michael Cuddyer.
Cuddyer’s numbers have been solid, if unspectacular, while
the rest of the Minnesota cast has been hurt for a portion of the season,
allowing an opening for the veteran. His versatility and power
against southpaws will give the AL team some flexibility. Of course, as it
stands right now, the NL
has only three left-handed pitchers on their roster (Kershaw, Lee and Hamels)
which means Cuddyer will probably not see a favorable match-up when he is
inserted into the late innings of the game.
Personally, I would have selected Scott Baker over Michael
Cuddyer, but likely based on Baker’s pedestrian win-loss record despite
outstanding peripherals, the committee passed him by. What’s more is the deep
list of AL
pitchers who have performed well enough to merit inclusion on the roster. If
CC Sabathia was not deemed worthy, Baker had no chance.
Nevertheless, a hearty congratulations is due to Cuddyer. After a
season in which plenty
of questions were raised about his power that had disappeared after a big
drop in 2010, he has rebounded well in 2011.
