With the Orioles starting July on a skid, it's the perfect time for a diversion...hey, look at that! The All-Star rosters were unveiled yesterday! For once, the O's have something to celebrate as the Midsummer Classic approaches. After years of obligatory "gotta pick somebody" selections like George Sherrill and Ty Wigginton, the 2012 club is sending THREE players to Kansas City next week: center fielder Adam Jones (.302 AVG, .902 OPS, 19 HR, 42 RBI), catcher Matt Wieters (.249/.331/.440, 11 HR, 38 RBI, 38% caught stealing rate), and closer Jim Johnson (1.30 ERA, 0.78 WHIP, 23 SV). It's the second All-Star nod for both Jones and Wieters, and the first for Johnson. The last time the Birds had more than one guy on the squad was 2005, when Brian Roberts, Miguel Tejada, and B. J. Ryan all joined the party in Detroit. (That's just what this season needed: another parallel to the disastrous '05 campaign.)
But wait! There's (possibly) more! Starting pitcher Jason Hammel, who leads the O's staff with an 8-3 record, a 3.29 ERA, and 89 strikeouts in 93 innings, is one of five American League pitchers in the running for the Final Vote competition. With Japanese star Yu Darvish of the Rangers on the ballot, the odds seem to be stacked against Hammel, but if you want to show him your support,
vote here. Even if Jason gets shut out, the Orioles will still have three times as many All-Stars as the Red Sox, and that's something right there.
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