Call to the pen
Fansided

The way-too-early AL MLB All-Star Team starting lineup

By Bobby Mueller

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 6: Jose Ramirez #11 of the Cleveland Indians bats during the game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Sunday May 6, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Rob Tringali/SportsChrome/Getty Images)) *** Local Caption *** Jose Ramirez
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 6: Jose Ramirez #11 of the Cleveland Indians bats during the game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Sunday May 6, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Rob Tringali/SportsChrome/Getty Images)) *** Local Caption *** Jose Ramirez /
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MLB All-Star game
New York Yankees’ Gary Sanchez follows through on a solo home run in the ninth inning during Saturday’s baseball game against the Kansas City Royals on May 19, 2018, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/TNS via Getty Images) /

2018 AL MLB All-Star Team Catcher

Conventional Pick: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees

Gary Sanchez (.225/.323/.549) has an ugly batting average but his on-base percentage isn’t that bad, and he’s slugging over .500. He leads all AL catchers in plate appearances, home runs, runs scored, and RBI.

He also plays for the Yankees, so he should get plenty of votes when the online ballots come out. Up until Saturday’s big four-hit, two-homer game, he was trailing Luke Maile in WAR, but that big day bumped him to the top of the WAR standings for catchers.

Combined WAR Pick: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees (1.3 averaged WAR)

As mentioned above, up until Saturday, Toronto platoon catcher Luke Maile was leading all catchers in Fangraphs WAR and Baseball-Reference WAR. Maile is having one of “those years.” He came into this season with a career .183/.207/.289 batting line over three seasons and 297 plate appearances.

Through Saturday’s games, he was hitting .319/.395/.500. A big part of his sky-high production is a .488 Batting Average on Balls In Play (BABIP), which is unsustainable for a guy with a career .279 BABIP.

Last Calendar Year pick: Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees

Over the last 365 days, Sanchez has hit .263/.334/.544 with 42 HR, 98 R, and 113 RBI. He’s been the best catcher in the American League, and the only catcher close is the surprising Mike Zunino.

Speaking of Zunino, he should get some recognition for his .256/.329/.538 batting line over the last calendar year. He also has 31 HR and 77 RBI during that time.

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