I’ll be honest, the subject matter for this All-Star piece shifted from the or

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Ill be honest, the subject matter for this All-Star piece shifted from the original intent.This started out as a bit of a criticism of the All-Star rosters, a proce s that meant Blake Snell a lefty having a phenomenal season for the Rays was left at home and fellow pitcher Joe Jimenez a late-inning reliever having a good-not-great season for the Tigers made the squad. Its definitely a flawed system. My original goal was to find a lineup of All-Star snubs who were having better seasons than guys who actually made the roster.MORE: Turns out, finding those guys was the easy part. Picking which snub was the most snubbed was the hard part. Doing the research, this turned more into an appreciation of just how many players are having All-Star caliber seasons acro s the league. So this will be a position-by-position look at not just the biggest snubs of the selection proce s, but just how many guys actually qualify for snub status this year.A quick aside: There are competing thoughts Greedy Williams Jersey on what the All-Star Game itself should be. Should it be mostly a celebration of the biggest names in the sport, where the superstars are annually chosen regardle s of what type of season theyre having? Or should the All-Star Game be a reward for players who have played very well in the first half of the year? I lean toward the latter I loved watching Jack Armstrong kick off the 1990 game as the NLs starting pitcher though I understand the other point of view. Basically, I would rather see an out-of-nowhere guy like Max Muncy play a couple of innings at third base next week than Kris Bryant, a bonafide superstar who isnt having his best year.This exercise uses the having a great year school of thought as the guideline.1B: Jesus Aguilar, BrewersWhy he belongs: Milwaukee has been in competition for the NLs best record for most of the season, and while its easy and valid to point to the contributions of newcomers Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich as a reason for that succe s, Brewers fans will tell you that Aguilar has been the rock in the middle of the lineup Austin Seibert Jersey that has kept the team rolling. Milwaukees 2-1 win over the Cardinals on June 22 is a perfect example; as a team, the Brewers only managed three hits, but two of those were solo home runs by Aguilar to break up Jack Flahertys no-hit attempt in the seventh, and a walk-off homer in the ninth. For the year, Aguilar is batting .301 and leads the NL with 22 home runs, a .633 slugging percentage and 1.001 OPS.Snubblicious: In his first full season in the bigs, Matt Olson has 19 homers and a 2.5 bWAR for the As, better numbers than the guy who was voted in by fans (Jose Abreu, 12 and 0.3). In the NL, Brandon Belt has 13 home runs (his career-high is 18), to go with a .300 average, .393 on-base percentage and .902 OPS.2B: Jed Lowrie, AsWhy he belongs: For the fans of traditional stats, only one second baseman has more home runs and RBIs than Lowrie, who checks in at 16 and 62 (NL starter Javy Baez has 17 and 65). Lowrie has a robust 3.4 bWAR, to go with a 140 OPS+ and 139 wRC+ (behind only Jose Altuve). And you may have noticed that the As have won 16 of their past 20 games; Lowrie has a 1.066 OPS and 20 RBIs in that stretch.Snubblicious: Honestly, Lowrie is the primary snub at second base. In Kansas City, Whit Merrifield is having a fine year (.303 average, 16 stolen bases) but the player vote sunk his chances; Yankees rookie Gleyber Torres was voted in at second base, and the players also chose Sal Perez, despite a .255 OBP, satisfying the have to have a Royal qualification.SS: Jean Segura, MarinersWhy he belongs: Batting average is far from a perfect stat, but Segura is batting .330 on the season, a number thats third in the majors. Not third among shortstops Britton Colquitt Jersey or third among AL West players or just third among AL hitters. Its third in the majors. Add to that an .827 OPS, a 2.9 bWAR (3.1 fWAR), 47 RBIs (batting first or second in the order) and 14 stolen bases, and you have a resume thats very All-Star worthy.Snubblicious: The shortstop position is stacked with talented players this year. Staying in the AL, Olivier Vernon Jersey Andrelton Simmons has been the only other reliable bat in the Angels lineup with Mike Trout; hes batting .307 with an .805 OPS and remains the best defensive shortstop in baseball. Xander Bogaerts (.875 OPS) and Carlos Correa (.832 OPS) are having excellent seasons, and Didi Gregorius has 15 homers and 10 stolen bases. In the NL, Trea Turner has a 3.3 bWAR, to go with 11 homers, 22 stolen bases and 54 runs scored.3B: Max Muncy, DodgersWhy he belongs: The All-Star Game is an incredible place to celebrate baseballs best stories, and Muncys out-of-nowhere season qualifies as a great story. He played 95 games for the As between the 2015-16 seasons, batting .195 with a .611 OPS, then was cut at the end of spring training 2017. The Dodgers signed him and he spent the season with their Triple-A club, batting .309 with 12 homers in 109 games in Oklahoma City. So, yeah, its a bit of a surprise that hes popped 20 homers and posted a 1.017 OPS in his 67 major-league games. Hes started games at first, third and second, and also played outfield six times, too. Baseball needs to celebrate stories like his on the big stage.Snubblicious: It would have been nice for the Nationals fans to be able to cheer for Anthony Rendon in his home park. Hes doing what he always does, which is put up consistently excellent numbers (.280 average, 12 home runs, .858 OPS). If Matt Carpenter had been put in the leadoff spot all season, he Joe Schobert Jersey might have been a no-brainer. Check this out: In 40 games since he was moved back to leadoff, on May 26, Carpenter has 13 homers, 36 runs scored, a .412 on-base percentage and a 1.070 OPS; entering May 26, he had four home runs, a .318 OBP and a .685 OPS.MORE: OF: Eddie Rosario, Twins; Andrew Benintendi, Red Sox; NicholasCastellanos, TigersWhy they belong: Heres how the list of bWAR leaders among outfielders goes: Mike Trout (6.9), Mookie Betts (5.4), Aaron Judge (5.0), Lorenzo Cain (4.1), Eddie Rosario (3.9). Feels like the guy immediately behind Trout, Betts, Judge and Cain MVP candidates, all should at least have been an All-Star backup, right? Rosario has 18 homers, 53 RBIs, a .301 average and .878 OPS. Benintendi has 14 homers and 16 stolen bases. Know how many guys have at least that many of both stats? Just three other players Betts, Jose Ramirez and Javy Baez. Add that to 65 runs scored and an .894 OPS and you have an All-Star, folks. If the Tigers were going to have only the minimum one All-Star representative, it just feels wrong to have the guys who ranks 13th on the team in bWAR,