2011 NL End of Year All-Star Team

Yesterday, I created a year-end All-Star team for the Junior Circuit, and I will naturally do the same for the Senior Circuit today. There will be one player for each position, and the “DH” will be the best offensive pitcher. The rotation will consist of five pitchers, and the bullpen will have three relievers ( two set-up men, one closer).

P Carlos Zambrano: Only two pitchers were worth at least 1 WAR offensively, and these two pitchers were Carlos Zambrano and Daniel Hudson– I bet the White Sox regret that trade. Although he only had 48 plate appearances, Z proved why he is regarded as the best hitting pitcher in the game by posting a .318/.348/.500 triple slash.

C Miguel Montero: Now for the real hitters. Cardinals defensive wizard Yadier Molina merited some consideration, but Montero is a solid defensive catcher in his own right and is the better hitter. Although Molina had the higher wRC+ due to park adjustments, Montero got on base at a higher rate and had more power, despite a considerably higher strikeout rate. His 86 RBIs were the most among all catchers in the NL.

1B Joey Votto: And to think the Reds would even consider trading this superstar. Votto scored 101 runs and drove in 103, but the more impressive statistic was his 6.9 WAR. No other first baseman had a WAR of 6, and only two had WARs over 5 (current free agents Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols). Votto was definitely the best defensive first baseman in the National League, and he also had a wOBA of .403 with a .309/.416/.531 line.

2B Brandon Phillips: Joey Votto is joined by teammate Brandon Phillips on my All-Star team, and Phillips was far and away the best keystone sacker in the NL in 2011. His 6 WAR and Gold Glove-worthy defense go well with a .353 on-base percentage. Phillips was smart on the bases, and he hit .300 on the nose. Also of note is that no other 2B had a WAR of 4, although Rickie Weeks would have surpassed that mark (3.7 WAR) if he was healthy (118 G).

SS Jose Reyes: At strong safety shortstop, Jose Reyes gets the All-Star nod. One of the marquee free agents this offseason, Reyes had a marquee season and was an MVP candidate until the injury bug bit. He still had a wRC+ of 149 on the strength of a .384 OBP that was backed by a .337 batting average. Reyes stole 39 bases in 2011, and his walk rate was slightly above his strikeout rate on the season.

3B Aramis Ramirez: Wow, didn’t see this one coming. The current free agent was tied with Ryan Roberts for the league lead among third basemen in WAR (3.6), but that tie was largely based on the defense measured by UZR. Being the good stat-heads, we know all too well that UZR isn’t reliable over the course of just one season. That being said, A-Ram was a solid hitter among a class of poor offensive players at the hot corner. His .306/.361.510 line makes up for poor glovework, and Ramirez definitely displayed the most power at his position in the NL in the 2011 season (.204).

LF Ryan Braun: Braun is a beast who stole 33 bases and hit exactly the same amount of home runs. Power goes past round-trippers, but Braun led NL left fielders in both taters and ISO with a.265 mark. His overall offensive numbers were insane, as he had a .332/.397/.597 triple slash with a .433 wOBA and a stellar 179 wRC+. Defense doesn’t matter much- especially in left- when you can hit like that.

CF Matt Kemp: What’s more to say about the consensus- I hope- 2011 NL MVP. Rihanna’s ex had an 8.7 WAR and was a home run away from a 40/40 season, as he stole 40 bases. Although Kemp’s defense is suspect at times, it’s tough to get a 171 wRC+ from a center fielder. The highest wRC+ among other NL center fielders was Shane Victorino‘s 135. What more is there to say about a guy who got on base at a .399 clip?

RF Justin Upton: 31 dingers and 21 steals are just a portion of Justin Upton’s contributions to the NL West champs. B.J.’s brother played well in the field and had a wRC+ of 140. Every qualified right fielder had a wRC+ over 100, with Jayson Werth‘s mark of 103 being the lowest. Upton hit for power, provided value on the bases, and he got on base (.369 OBP). Sometimes, it’s about being good at everything that counts.

SP Roy Halladay: The Doc was cooking with a pitching triple slash (ERA/FIP/xFIP) of 2.35/2.20/2.71 and was worth 8.2 WAR. More than half of the hitters he faced put the ball on the ground, and he walked only 1.35 batters per nine innings. Roy Halladay is the best pitcher of this era, and he has actually gotten better each year to this point.

SP Clayton Kershaw: CK is also getting Cy Young love, and Kershaw’s 2.28/2.47/2.84 line is a testament to the talk. Armed with perhaps the nastiest slider in baseball, Kershaw struck out 9.57 hitters for every nine innings he pitched. He also tied Ian Kennedy in the greatest statistic in baseball history, wins, with 21.

SP Cliff Lee: A 2.40/2.60/2.68 pitching triple slash will do that for you, as Cliff Lee continues his dominance in a Phillies uniform. The former NL pennant-winning ace picked up where he left off in his second stint with the Phillies and mowed down about 9.21 hitters for every nine innings. Yuniesky Betancourt (aka The Running Gag) accounts for the .21. Geeky baseball humor aside, Lee walked just 1.62 hitters per nine innings pitched and was just a tenth of a win under this team’s number two starter.

SP Madison Bumgarner: Already one of the best starters in baseball, the sophomore starter had a 2.67 FIP and was better than staff aces Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain. The Giants hitting was so bad that three ace-quality pitchers couldn’t carry this team to the playoffs.

SP Zack Greinke: I just couldn’t look away from the 2.56 xFIP and the 10.54 K/9 ratio; I didn’t have the fifteen percent concentrated power of will. Even if Greinke isn’t a fan of Mike Shinoda, he is still my fifth starter. While Greinke’s 3.83 ERA wasn’t anything to write home about, his .318 BABIP against was unlucky, as was his 13.6 HR/FB ratio against. Although true value is between the estimators and the actual, I really doubt a guy who struck out over ten batters every nine was that far away from having an ERA under 3.00.

CL Craig Kimbrel: There was no way I was going to deny the Braves rookie from closing for this team. Kimbrel averaged nearly 15 strikeouts per nine (!), but he did have a BB/9 of 3.74. However, there is no way that I ignore the 1.52 FIP; that’s a difficult number to attain.

SU Jonny Venters: The 4.40 BB/9 aside, Jonny Venters was spectacular in 2011 and was part of the best three-headed monster in baseball in the Braves ‘pen. Eric O’Flaherty’s 0.98 ERA couldn’t get him on this list, but Venters’s third best WPA was. He struck out nearly ten helpless hitters per nine, and nobody could really hit the 1.84 ERA pitcher.

SU John Axford: Love the ‘stache, but I love the fact that he had the NL’s second best WPA even more. But more importantly No. 59 had the most saves in the NL with 46. Wait, saves aren’t important? Well, Axford did have a 10.51 K/9 ratio and had a GB% of 49.7. Oh yeah, a 1.95 ERA isn’t exactly detrimental to the progress of a team either.