Midwest All-Stars named

[texasdave]

Dragons have three.

MIDWEST LEAGUE ALL-STARS
The Midwest League last night announced its 2011 all-stars…Three Dayton Dragons made the squad including RHP Daniel Corcino (7-3, 2.72, 11gs), RHP Josh Smith (5-3, 1.90, 11gs) and 1b Dominic D’Anna (.278, 3 HR, 28 RBI, .798 OPS)…a glaring omission from the team was C Tucker Barnhart, who’s batting .311 with 11 doubles and a .388 on-base percentage…the ML All-Star Game will be played in Davenport, IA on June 21.

[dougdirt]

It really is a shame that Barnhart didn't make it. He is hitting better than either of his divisions selected catchers and defensively I can't imagine either is better.

[redsof72]

Barnhart has been, without question, the best player on the Dayton team this season (position player). There is not really a close second.

His defense will get him to the big leagues. His progress as a hitter will dictate whether or not he can be an everyday player.

[OesterPoster]

Did he somehow get overlooked since he doesn't appear to have enough ABs to qualify for the league leaders in AVG and OBP?

[Pacerfan]

It's a shame, when looking at the offensive stats, that Barnhart didn't make it. It's even more glaring when comparing defensive stats. Brantly 5 e's, 10 pb's, and 31% cs. Monsalve 4 e's, 11 pb's, and 17% cs. Barnhart 1 e, 2 pb, and 49% cs. It is clear that defense wasn't even considered, seeing as how several of the catchers in the Midwest League would have been better candidates. The 2 selected are never going to be mistaken for Yadier Molina, or even Mike Piazza, for that matter.

[redsof72]

Here is how an injustice can occur:

The eight East Division managers are the voters for the all-star team. You can't vote for your own players.

Managers are not known for spending a ton of time trying to carefully select the most deserving candidate. Managers receive, each day, the stats for their team and the team they are playing that day as well as the league leaders (which Tucker does not appear in). So for example, the Lansing manager has not seen Tucker's stats since April. The Bowling Green manager has not seen his stats since early May when his average was much lower. If he had a bad series against a particular team, he probably did not get that manager's vote. Since your own manager can't vote for you, the most votes you could get would be seven. One or two votes are going to make a big difference.

It is unlikely that any of the managers have seen any defensive stats, although it is pretty easy to see which catchers can throw. That is one of the easier judgements to make without having to have stats. Again, Lansing has not seen him since April and he probably played two games against them.