Your 2009 Dodgers All-Stars

By
Robert C. Binyon
Published: July 13, 2009Posted in: Dodgers Articles

BP#7 ASG

With the 2009 MLB All-Star game right around the corner, the rosters have been announced, and the Dodgers don’t have quite as many All-Stars as you may think. The Dodgers have the best record in baseball, but really, it has been a great collective effort, rather than one or two guys carrying the whole burden.

The true mark of a great team, everyone contributes. With that being said they have three All-Stars, tied for third behind, Philadelphia(5), New York(4), St. Louis(3) and Milwaukee(3). Looks like the amount of All-Stars they have is right up to par with the league’s elite. This being said, let’s break down the Dodgers three All-Stars, and the two more that could have been.

BP#7 Hudson

Orlando Hudson, 2B, .283 AVG | 53 R | 48 RBI | 7 HR | 6 SB

Hudson has been great for the Dodgers this season, his batting average is right at his career average (.282), but is lower than it has been the past three seasons. So, we could possibly experience even hotter batting by the O-Dog later on this season (keep those fingers crossed).

By looking at past splits, his pre-All-Star batting average rests at .287 and his post-All-Star batting average rises to .306. As much as his batting has helped, his fielding abilities also make him a standout. His fielding percentage is at .990, sixth among big league second-basemen, fourth among the NL.

BP#7 Billingsley

Chad Billingsley, SP, 9-4 | 3.38 E.R.A. | 119 K

Billingsley is our ace, no doubt. He leads the team in wins, innings pitched and strikeouts. He’s been pitching very well this season, holding batters to .227 against him. He won’t be starting the All-Star game, but I hope he gets an inning or two. Since there is a possibility that the Dodgers could be in the World Series this year, I have a renewed interest in the Mid-Summer Classic.

BP#7 Broxton

Jonathan Broxton, Closer, 6-0 | 20 Saves | 3.10 E.R.A. | 65 K

Broxton has been straight ridiculous this season, his K-Per-9 is absolutely off the charts (14.55), and he has shut the door when brought into a tight situation. He’s only blown 2 saves. Although not leading the league in saves, he’s right there. Only 3 behind NL leaders Francisco Rodriguez, Heath Bell and Brian Wilson.

Broxton will not be pitching in this year’s All-Star game however, bowing out due to a toe injury. Although disappointed I won’t see his hundred-mile heat, I’m glad we’re erring on the side of caution, we don’t need him making the injury worse, just to pitch in the All-Star game.

Other Notes

Beside the three guys listed above, we could have probably added two more guys to our prominent list, Manny Ramirez and Matt Kemp. I agree with everyone when they say Manny doesn’t deserve to be there. He’s missed too many games. He’s playing great thus far in the season, but he’s just missed too many games.

Kemp on the other hand, hasn’t missed many, and he almost made it. He has been quoted as saying it was great to even be that close to making it. He was fourth out of five in the fan voting, losing to Shane Victorino.

The Dodgers will be well-represented in this year’s All-Star game. They have 3 of their top stars attending, and had a few of their young up-and-comers on the brink. As I mentioned before, this year’s game means a little more to us, with the possibility of playing in the World Series, we’d love to have that home-field-advantage.

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About the Author

Robert C. Binyon is currently attending UCLA and is undecided on his major. Robert is the owner/writer of "The L.A. Minute", and also helps run a sports video game site. www.virtualsportsnetwork.com