MLB 2011: ALL-STAR GAME PITCHERS

MLB

Pitchers and reserves have been named to the American League and National League All-Star Teams, as announced today by Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association and All-Star Game managers Bruce Bochy of the National League and Ron Washington of the American League. The 2011 American League and National League All-Star rosters were unveiled by TBS on the 2011 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show Presented by Taco Bell.
In addition to the starters who were elected by the fans, pitchers and reserve players were named to the All-Star Game rosters by the Player Ballot – a vote of the players, managers and coaches – and by the All-Star Game managers in conjunction with Major League Baseball. In making their selections, the managers have ensured that every Major League Club will be represented in the All-Star Game.

National League position players who have made the All-Star squad as a result of the Player Ballot are catcher Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals; first baseman Joey Votto of the Cincinnati Reds; Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips; shortstop Troy Tulowitzki of the Colorado Rockies; third baseman Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves; and outfielders Matt Holliday of the Cardinals, Jay Bruce of the Reds and Hunter Pence of the Houston Astros.

National League pitchers who have earned All-Star honors via the Player Ballot include starters Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee of the Philadelphia Phillies; Jair Jurrjens of the Braves; and Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The All-Star relievers via the Player Ballot are Joel Hanrahan of the Pittsburgh Pirates; Jonny Venters of the Braves; and Brian Wilson of the San Francisco Giants.

Bochy had nine slots to round out the rest of the N.L. roster. The position players chosen by the manager in conjunction with Major League Baseball are outfielders Carlos Beltran of the New York Mets and Justin Upton of the Arizona Diamondbacks; and infielders Starlin Castro of the Chicago Cubs and Gaby Sanchez of the Florida Marlins. The pitchers that Bochy selected are starters Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Ryan Vogelsong of the Giants; and relievers Heath Bell of the San Diego Padres and Tyler Clippard of the Washington Nationals.

The final N.L. roster spot, to be determined by the 2011 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Sprint, will be contested among outfielder Andre Ethier of the Dodgers; first baseman Todd Helton of the Rockies; starting pitcher Ian Kennedy of the D-backs; outfielder Mike Morse of the Nationals; and outfielder Shane Victorino of the Phillies.

American League position players who are invited to the 82nd All-Star Game as a result of Player Balloting are catcher Russell Martin of the New York Yankees; first baseman Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers; second baseman Howie Kendrick of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim; shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera of the Cleveland Indians; third baseman Adrian Beltre of the Texas Rangers; outfielders Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox, Matt Joyce of the Tampa Bay Rays and Carlos Quentin of the Chicago White Sox; and designated hitter Michael Young of the Rangers.

A.L. pitchers who have made the 2011 All-Star Game as a result of the Player Ballot include starters Justin Verlander of the Tigers; James Shields of the Rays; Boston’s Josh Beckett; Jered Weaver of the Angels; and Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners. The relievers whose All-Star berths came via the Player Ballot are Mariano Rivera of the Yankees; Cleveland’s Chris Perez; and Seattle’s Brandon League.

Washington’s seven selections included a pair of position players: catcher Matt Wieters of the Baltimore Orioles and outfielder Michael Cuddyer of the Minnesota Twins. Filling out the remainder of the A.L. roster are starting pitchers Gio Gonzalez of the Oakland Athletics, David Price of the Rays and C.J. Wilson of the Rangers; and relievers Aaron Crow of the Kansas City Royals and Jose Valverde of the Tigers.

The 2011 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Sprint will determine the 34th A.L. roster spot, a competition that will feature outfielder Alex Gordon of the Royals; outfielder Adam Jones of the Orioles; first baseman Paul Konerko of the White Sox; designated hitter Victor Martinez of the Tigers; and second baseman Ben Zobrist of the Rays.

Fans can now begin voting to select the final player for each League’s 34-man roster via the 2011 All-Star Game MLB.com Final Vote Sponsored by Sprint, casting their votes exclusively online at MLB.com from a list of five players from each League over a four-day period. The winners will be announced after the voting concludes on Thursday, July 7th. Now in its seventh year, fans again will be able to make their Final Vote selections on their mobile phones, courtesy of Sprint.

The 82nd Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and Le Reseau des Sports, and around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8:00 p.m. (EDT)/5:00 p.m. (local). ESPN Radio and ESPN Radio Deportes will provide exclusive national radio coverage. MLB Network, MLB.com and Sirius XM also will provide comprehensive All- Star Game coverage. For more information, please visit allstargame.com or dbacks.com/asg.