Sunday, July 8, 2012

All 'Murica Team

This is the American League counterpart to Andy's "NL Super-Team". Abiding by the same rules as him, this is what I came up with.


Batting Order
1. Joe Mauer, 2, MIN
     -Nobody in the AL is getting on-base at a higher rate, but his affinity for groundballs makes me wary of putting him at #2 in the order.
2. Mike Trout, 8, LAA
     -He's the complete package: plays a great center field, and will be disruptive on the base paths. Not to mention, his speed should keep him out of rally-killing double plays (ahem, Mauer).
3. Josh Hamilton, 7, TEX
     -Probably the best pure hitter in the world.
4. Miguel Cabrera, 3, DET
     -Probably the best right handed hitter in the world.
5. Robinson Cano, 4, NYY
     -Maintains the RH-LH alternating line-up. And he's another complete hitter.
6. Jose Bautista, 9, TOR
     -I could hear an argument for him batting as high as #2, because he's an on-base machine. I'll slot him down here because he's just not as good a pure hitter as that murderer's row of a top 5.
7. David Ortiz, DH, BOS
     -It's an embarrassment of riches in the AL lineup. An absolute crime that Papi is hitting 7th.
8. Evan Longoria, 5, TB
    -It was tough to pick him over Adrian Beltre, but Evan is right side of 30 and, in my opinion, a better hitter.
9. Elvis Andrus, 6, TEX
    -You could do worse than having a very good defensive shortstop and .370 OBP at the #9 slot in the lineup.

Bench
Matt Wieters, 2, BAL
   -Mauer won't be able to catch 162 games a year, Wieters can easily fill in for him or be a late game defensive replacement if Mauer is lifted for a pinch runner.
Asdrubal Cabrera, 4/6, CLE
   -A solid backup option for both Andrus and Cano. Having his bat in the line-up won't be a significant drop off either.
Alex Gordon, 5,7,9, KC
   -I like Alex for his versatility in the corners as well as his potential as a pinch runner. And he crushes right-handed pitching.
Prince Fielder, 3, DET
  -Pinch. Hitter. Especially for Andrus if he's facing a righty in a big spot. Tough choice between him and Pujols, but Prince is so much fun to watch.
Ben Zobrist, Super-utility, TB
  -He can play just about anywhere.

Rotation
1. Justin Verlander, DET
   -No brainer, by far the best pitcher in the AL.
2. Felix Hernandez, SEA
   -The next 3 guys could be in any order, but I'll go with the King here. He'll log a lot of quality innings for me.
3. Jered Weaver, LAA
    -I don't know why, but I don't like Jered. Maybe it's bad memories of his brother Jeff. Or his face. Regardless, he's got the #3 slot in my rotation.
4. CC Sabathia, NYY
    -Inning monger. Very few pitchers I'd rather depend on going into a season. He's averaged 214 IP and a 3.13 ERA since 2006.
5. Chris Sale, CWS
    -I'd like to use Sale as a sort of swing-man. Mostly starting, but if his start can skipped because of off days, I'd be happy to see him as a shut down, multi-inning reliever when possible.

Bullpen
Mariano Rivera
    -I don't care that he's hurt, he has a spot in my bullpen.
Brayan Villarreal
   -He's been unhittable against righties this year. Brayan has this spot as a situational righty.
David Robertson
   -One of the best relievers in League of Americans.
Ryan Cook
   -Cook's been unhittable this year. Also, I needed an Oakland A.
Francisco Liriano
   -Multi-inning reliever. I liked what I saw out of him in his short stint in the 'pen and his slider is filthy. So he gets a spot.
David Price
   -Finding good lefties was more difficult than I thought. So I poached Price. He was great out of the ol' bullpen his rookie year.

26th Man
Andy says I get to pick a 26th man. With the way this roster is created, I'm not sure I really need one. But because I can, I'll pick...
AJ Pierzynski
  -Because he's a badass. And also, for a double header, I might need a 3rd catcher but will probably not need another pitcher.

So please, tell me in the comments section, how many games my team would win out 162 against Andy's (weak) team. What do you think? 115? 130? ALL 162?

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