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The 2013 Home Run Derby participants have been set, and it’s obvious the American League has the edge on paper. David Wright might have the home-field advantage at Citi Field and Bryce Harper on his roster, but it’s not going to be enough on July 15.

Wright and Harper will be joined by the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Pedro Alvarez and the Colorado Rockies’ Michael Cuddyer.

Meanwhile, the American League boasts captain Robinson Cano, MLB‘s season home run leader Chris Davis, Prince Fielder and Yoenis Cespedes. Fielder won the 2012 Derby for the American League, while Cespedes will compete in his first in his young career.

While Wright will be playing the role of the hometown captain in this event, he’s not exactly Barry Bonds when it comes to belting homers. The Mets third baseman has 13 long balls this year so far, which is one short of his 2011 total. Wright’s career high for homers in a season is 33, two less than Davis has already tallied this season.

Cuddyer falls under the same category as Wright. He hasn’t hit more than 20 home runs in a season since 2009.

Alvarez knows a thing or two about belting home runs, but he’s also quite familiar with striking out. Carlos Gonzalez’s Derby replacement has already gone down on strikes 108 times this season.

While he can’t strike out on July 15, Alvarez could miss contact with a few of the lobs thrown down the middle of the plate. Even if he doesn’t, he will have a tough time keeping pace with Cano and Fielder, let alone Davis.

Harper is the National League’s only true threat to oppose Davis, Fielder and company in this event. The Nationals’ star outfielder hit 12 of his 13 home runs before the end of May.

Even figuring in Harper’s early hot streak, Davis is the favorite to win this event and Fielder is the defending Derby champion. Davis hit 22 homers between May and June alone.

Obviously, the Derby is different than hitting a home run in a regular-season game, but the statistics point toward the AL having the better bats. Cano’s team has some of the MLB’s most impressive power hitters on its roster. The NL has batters who see the ball well, but it only has two true power hitters.

Ultimately, this is an event the American League should win easily. The only question is which AL batter will edge out the victory.

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The MLB All-Star game is just days away, and with home field advantage on the line in the World Series, expect certain stars to put on a show.

Let’s take a look at this year’s All-Star rosters for both the American and National League, then dive into whom to keep an eye on.

MLB All-Star Game Rosters

American League

National League

* = Starter

^ = Injured, will not play

Rosters courtesy of MLB.com.

Based on the first half of play in the 2013 season, here are the three players sure to stand out in this year’s All-Star game:

Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves

Freeman was named to the NL roster via fan vote, beating out young Dodgers sensation Yasiel Puig for the spot. Regardless of how he made the All-Star game, Freeman is sure to make his presence felt for his team.

The Braves’ first baseman has tallied 60 RBIs, 49 runs and 19 doubles to pair with his .313 batting average. Freeman’s average puts him among the top 20 players in that category heading into the All-Star break.

The high average is a tad unexpected from the young power hitter. Freeman posted a .259 average just last season, but did bat .282 in 2011.

All of these stats mean that Freeman is seeing the ball better than he ever has during his big-league career. It might come in the form of doubles and singles instead of a home run, but Freeman will make some noise for the NL in this game.

Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles

Someone who is almost guaranteed to make his presence felt with a homer in the exhibition is Baltimore first baseman Chris Davis.

Davis currently leads the MLB in home runs with 34, already besting his previous career single-season high of 33 set last year. His 34 dingers are also more than NL Home Run Derby captain David Wright has ever recorded in a single season.

There’s no better or easier way to say it: Davis is simply crushing everything he sees so far this season. Like Freeman, Davis is also boasting an unusually high average of .310. Over his six years in the majors, Davis has accumulated a .267 career average.

Even with the National League’s best arms throwing at the Orioles slugger, he’s sure to grab at least one home run.

Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals

With young hurlers like Matt Harvey and now Matt Moore in this All-Star game, one might forget about guys like Adam Wainwright. Considering his season so far though, the AL better not take the Cardinals’ pitcher lightly.

Wainwright currently owns the third-best ERA among all MLB pitchers at 2.30. That number puts him ahead of the likes of Harvey, Jordan Zimmermann and Felix Hernandez.

While he won’t be given a whole lot of innings to make a difference, Wainwright is sure to keep the American League bats silent when he’s on the mound. He already has 126 strikeouts, which just is 58 fewer than his total from 2012.

Wainwright is sure to sit some AL batters down on strikes when he pitches in the Mid-Summer classic. Even if he only works an inning, he will keep the AL off the bases for that time frame.

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The 2013 MLB All-Star Game rosters have been announced, and on paper, it’s clear which team has the advantage. Home-field advantage in this year’s World Series is on the line, and the National League will earn that honor.

Playing in the New York Mets’ Citi Field paired with its roster, the National League has the edge on paper. There are plenty of first-timers on the NL squad, but that is not due to any kind of lack of talent in the league. 

Here is the full All-Star roster for both squads, courtesy of MLB.com:

MLB All-Star Game Starters

American League

National League

* = Starter

^ = Injured, will not play

Both teams have exciting and talented rosters, with the American League boasting red-hot Chris Davis and his 33 home runs. Countering Davis and the AL batters’ firepower are Matt Harvey, Clayton Kershaw, Cliff Lee, Madison Bumgarner and others.

Kershaw owns the MLB’s lowest ERA at 1.93, with fellow NL All-Stars Harvey and Adam Wainwright just behind at 2.27 and 2.36, respectively. All three pitchers have struck out at least 117 batters already this season.

American League hurler Felix Hernandez currently owns the 10th-best ERA in the league but does have 130 strikeouts to his name so far. Yu Darvish, Justin Verlander and Chris Sale are other fine AL arms available, but there’s more to like about the National League names.

Aroldis Chapman, Jason Grilli and Craig Kimbrel are available to pitch the last few innings for the NL. Those three have the edge over Glen Perkins, Joe Nathan and Mariano Rivera.

Justin Masterson and Max Scherzer are other weak links on the AL squad. Masterson has been shelled for six earned runs in two of his past three outings.

Scherzer is on a roll this year, but his 2011 and 2012 seasons cannot be forgotten. He finished with an ERA of 3.74 or higher both years and lost two of his three postseason starts last year.

As for batting, having Mike Trout, Davis and Jose Bautista is intimidating paired with David Ortiz and others. 

When you look at the NL with David Wright, Bryce Harper, Carlos Beltran and Carlos Gonzalez, there’s a lot to like for the home team. 

The batting is a bit of a wash. Wright doesn’t have the pop that AL third baseman Davis has, but he knows Citi Field better than anyone in the All-Star game. No manager could go wrong with either team’s starting outfielders.

Like other recent All-Star Games, this one will come down to pitching. Over the past three All-Star Games, the American League has tallied just two runs and lost each exhibition. Expect the pitching depth of the National League to best the AL for the fourth straight year at Citi Field.

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The 2013 MLB All-Star rosters have been announced and that means it’s time to judge the selections. Obviously there are plenty of players who deserve the honor, but some names deserve it more than others. Here are the best and worst selections to this year’s all-star game.

Best Choices

Chris Davis

No surprise here. The guy dubbed “Crush” Davis has been on an absolute tear this entire season. He has 33 home runs and over 80 RBIs before the mid-season mark.

Not known for his average over his six seasons in the bigs, Davis is also hitting .325 right now. He’s never finished a season with an average over .300.

There was no doubt that Davis was going to make this year’s American League team considering his start to this season. He garnered over 8 million votes. Barring any injury between now and July 16, Davis will suit up at Citi Field and maybe even knock another few homers out of the park.

Matt Harvey

He’s started just 28 games in his MLB career but make no mistake: Matt Harvey deserves to take the mound first for the National League.

So far this season, the Mets ace has already struck out 141 batters and owns a 2.27 ERA through 123 innings of work.

Those numbers are good no matter what team you play for but it’s not like Harvey has had that much help. The Mets are currently ranked 20th in runs and 29th in batting average in the league. Harvey has had to earn each of those seven wins currently on his 7-2 record the hard way.

If his club allows it, Harvey should take the mound for the NL at Citi Field and not just to make the home fans happy. He has earned the right to take the ball first.

Worst Choices

Adam Jones

Adam Jones deserves to make the American League roster but doesn’t deserve to start. Jones does have 15 home runs, 59 RBIs and a .287 average. Those numbers are impressive but others are right there with him statistically.

AL reserve player Nelson Cruz has a lower batting average at .268 but has six more homers and just four fewer RBIs. Boston outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, who didn’t make the roster, has a .302 average with 34 steals and 30 RBIs. 

There will always be people looking to nitpick all-star rosters but four Orioles made the American League team. Considering how many Baltimore players will be in the AL dugout, it would’ve been appropriate to see Cruz or fellow reserve Alex Gordon get the starting nod.

Justin Masterson

Justin Masterson must be ecstatic about his first all-star selection but hearing his name called was puzzling. The Indians hurler has surrendered six earned runs in two of his last three outings. His ERA has gone from 3.48 to 3.78 over that time span.

Kansas City’s Ervin Santana owns a 2.84 ERA with 89 strikeouts and a misleading 5-5 record. That win-loss record is more due to Santana’s 41-43 record team than his own failures. He wasn’t even named to the American League roster.

Masterson is an interesting and new name to see named to the all-star game. That being said, as good a season he’s had, he didn’t deserve the selection this year.

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The Texas Rangers may be allowing their star batter Josh Hamilton to test the free-agent market this offseason, but he should stay with this team regardless of the offers sure to come his way.

Hamilton has had one of the more interesting MLB careers to date, with his drug issues almost ending it prematurely awhile back. This is a team that saw potential in him despite his off-the-field issues and has enjoyed some of its greatest recent success after centering the franchise around him.

The loyalty card is not one that is often honored in this age of baseball, but it is something Hamilton should sincerely consider. If Albert Pujols can be persuaded to take the money and run, it seems unlikely that Hamilton couldn’t be tempted as well; but it’s not as if the Rangers don’t have money to give.

Texas hasn’t been throwing Los Angeles Angels-type money around recently, but it did acquire Mike Adams, Joe Nathan and Yu Darvish just last year. This is a team that went to the 2010 ALCS, 2011 World Series and the 2012 postseason. The Rangers are knocking on that door where the World Series trophy is held and have the talent to make it open it as early as 2013 if Hamilton rejoins the club.

Even in a clear open invitation to bash Hamilton for his personal mistakes during this year’s season, Rangers owner Nolan Ryan elected to take the high road. ESPN Dallas’ Richard Durrett asked the owner if he thought his starting centerfielder quit on his club down the stretch, to which Ryan replied:

“If he would have gotten a couple of hits in those key situations or if he hadn’t dropped that ball in Oakland, would people be saying that? No, they wouldn’t be saying that. It didn’t look good. But do I think he quit? I have no reason to think he quit.”

There will likely need to be a few promises made to get Hamilton back in a Rangers cap for next year, but this team can shell out the money. It also has a whole offseason to re-tool the pitching staff that still needs help.

Lance Pugmire of The Los Angeles Times believes that Hamilton “has earned a deal in the eight-year, $160-million neighborhood.” That seems like a price that the Rangers will be forced to offer to get Hamilton back and one that some teams could easily offer more than.

But the Rangers have a team that is just a few pieces away from winning the World Series in the years to come, and there aren’t a whole lot of teams who can say that around the MLB. Hamilton can’t find a much better situation than the one he currently has in Texas, and if it means taking less money to stay there, he should.

Ryan’s team deserves a little bit of a hometown discount considering that Hamilton’s best years of baseball were spent with this ball club. Loyalty may not mean as much as it used to, but loyalty and a fair multimillion dollar offer should be one that Hamilton agrees to.

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The MLB is in postseason mode, but the league is not far away from being in offseason mode, which means some big-name outfielders will likely be on the move. There will be plenty of talent available in this position’s free agent pool in 2013, and here are the top guys your team should be aiming for in the outfield.

These rankings are based on the likelihood of a player producing with his new club based on his history, consistency and statistics over the past few seasons. For the sake of this piece, outfielders with options to stay with their current clubs were left out because they are less likely to join a new team.

1. LF Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

Regardless of his flirtations with the injury bug and his off-field decisions that could hinder his MLB shelf-life, one of the MLB’s top home run threats easily tops this list.

After losing the American League Wild Card to the Orioles, the current Ranger told Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas: “You hate to have it happen possibly the last game ever here, but at the same time, it’s one of those things.”

He would go on to tell MacMahon that he would “absolutely” give Texas the right to match any of the surely many offers he’ll receive, but his earlier words don’t exactly instill confidence.

Considering how many playoff disappointments that Hamilton has suffered as a Ranger, it wouldn’t be crazy to see him move on to another club. If Albert Pujols can be persuaded, so can Hamilton.

No. 32 is coming off a career-high in terms of home runs, and just two shy of his best single-season total in RBI, so it’s not as if he’s showing signs of slowing down just yet.

If Hamilton decides to move, he’ll be getting a huge payday. In addition, could certainly land on a team just as, if not more talented that Texas.

2. CF Michael Bourn, Atlanta Braves

It seems odd that Bourn and the Braves would want to part ways after just their first full season together, but that could happen this offseason.

If Bourn is open to leaving the ATL, then any team with the budget to pay him should give him a call. Over the past two seasons, the speedy center-fielder has tallied over 100 stolen bases, almost 200 runs scored and 20 triples.

There isn’t much power to see here, but what Bourn lacks in that category he more than makes up in others as previously noted.

The Texas-native will be 30 years old by the start of next season, but that’s not by any means a number that should concern any team’s general manager.

Bourn is a sure-fire 40 or more steals player year in and out and can make any team’s chances of scoring runs a whole lot better.

3. RF Cody Ross, Boston Red Sox

Ross doesn’t exactly fit the “history” criteria at first glance, but people forget this year isn’t the first time he’s posted solid numbers in his career.

The first-year Boston player had a respectable campaign in 2012 with 22 home runs and 81 RBI, very similar to his output in 2009 with the then-Florida Marlins.

During that year, Ross posted a career-high 24 homers and 90 RBI immediately after a 2008 season when he had 22 and 73 in those same categories.

Ross isn’t going to cost a team nearly as much as the likes of Bourn or Hamilton will on the market and the Red Sox appear ready to sell any and all members of their disappointing 2012 club. He’d be a solid addition to a team in need of some quality but affordable help in the power department.

Best of the Rest:

Just missing the cut were the following players:

CF Angel Pagan, San Francisco Giants

CF B.J. Upton, Tampa Bay Rays

RF Nick Swisher, New York Yankees

RF Ichiro Suzuki, New York Yankees

LF Melky Cabrera, San Francisco Giants

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Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe is reporting that Will Middlebrooks’ injury is being diagnosed as a broken wrist, according to a source:

Source: Will Middlebrooks has a broken wrist. #RedSox will call up Danny Valencia forSaturday’s game.

— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) August 11, 2012

As Abraham’s tweet states, Danny Valencia is the call-up for Boston to replace the rookie third baseman. Valencia was acquired from the Minnesota Twins on Aug. 5 in exchange for minor league outfielder Jeremias Pineda.

The former Twin was batting .198 with just two home runs and 17 RBI on the season. The three-year veteran has not been able to deliver the same power he did in 2011, where he launched 15 balls into the stands for Minnesota along with 72 RBI.

Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald believes that infielder Nick Punto could also see time at the third base position due to Middlebrooks’ injury. Lauber says the Red Sox expect to have a more detailed report on all things Middlebrooks before the game against Cleveland on Aug. 11.

For the injured rookie, this injury puts a sharp halt to an impressive first year in the big leagues. Middlebrooks was batting .288 with 15 homers, 54 RBI and four steals despite starting the 2011 season in the minor leagues.

Abraham was able to chat with Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine about the injury, and Valentine told the Globe reporter Middlebrooks was “hit in a bad spot.” Middlebrooks himself said, “I have no idea what it is. I just know it hurts.”

Valencia has played in two games for Triple-A Pawtucket since being acquired by Boston. He recorded a three-hit, two RBI performance in the team’s 9-3 victory over the Rochester Red Wings on Aug. 10.

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San Francisco third baseman and 2011 All-Star selection Pablo Sandoval is being investigated by the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department over possible sexual assault charges, according to Andrew Baggarly of CSN Bay Area.

Sources told Baggarly’s employer that the alleged incident took place early in the morning this past Friday at the Seascape Beach Resort. However, those same sources explained that Sandoval was not a registered guest at the resort during that time.

Sources who talked with CSN Bay Area claim that the woman in question reported to the authorities that she was too intoxicated to give consent.

The investigation is still on going, and it’s important to note that Sandoval has not been charged by the police according to sources cited by CSN Bay Area.

Sandoval’s attorney, Eric Geffon agreed to an interview with CSN Bay Area, explaining:

On Friday, June 1, Pablo Sandoval voluntarily met with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Department related to a consensual, personal relationship of a sexual nature that took place on that day.

Geffon added that his client was fully cooperative with the authorities during the process.

Baggarly attempted to get the Giants‘ opinion regarding the alleged incident but was declined. Vice President Staci Slaughter simply told the reporter:

Given the off-the-field nature of the issue, we refer all comment to his attorney.

Slaughter did comment that Sandoval will play in his Single-A rehab assignment game with the San Jose Giants Saturday night.

The career-long Giant hasn’t played in a major league game since May 2 due to fracturing his hamate bone in his right wrist.

Sandoval had surgery to remove the bone and is starting the final step in his rehab process by working through the San Francisco farm system before making his return to the big leagues.

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Fantasy baseball owners are in large part a patient bunch, but it never helps to see a high-round pick like James Shields get rocked in his first start of 2012.

It took 105 pitches for Shields to get through just five innings against the New York Yankees on Friday—a team Shields had done surprisingly well against last year. Shields surrendered six earned runs against the Bronx Bombers, which was just three shy of his 2011 season total against them.

With all that being said, though, the Tampa Bay ace was one of the best pitchers in the American League last year, and it’s far too early to panic on the guy.

Shields is coming off arguably his best MLB season, with a career-best 225 strikeouts and 16 wins through 33 starts in 2011. He’s part of the most deadly rotation in baseball— his teammates include Matt Moore, Jeremy Hellickson and David Price—and there’s plenty to like about Shields this year.

He’s a strikeout machine, and his division isn’t looking as intimidating as it once was.

The American League East division has always had a reputation of housing some of the biggest sluggers in the bigs. But while the Yankees still have an imposing lineup, Boston is still trying to fit the pieces in place, and Toronto and Baltimore haven’t changed much since last season. So there’s no reason to fear the “mighty” AL East when you start Shields against his division rivals this year—or when he plays any other teams for that matter.

Sure, the Tampa Bay starter has had some ups and downs in his career. I mean, he finished with an ERA over five in 2010. While some analysts will point to that fact and worry that Shields is just the newest flash in the pan, you can go back to any time in his career and notice that he’s always had “the stuff.”

The 2012 Rays are a whole different beast than their 2010 team, with the aforementioned deadly rotation and an offense featuring Carlos Pena (once again), a more experienced Evan Longoria, Ben Zobrist and newcomer Desmond Jennings. Long gone are the days of Tampa Bay fielding a mediocre baseball team. These Rays mean business, and Shields is going to be a big part of their success this year.

In fantasy baseball, you have to wear through the early pains of all you drafted for at least the first month of the season, especially when it’s a superstar like Shields. As many analysts will tell you during April, this fantasy sport we love is a marathon, not a race. You don’t drop great players just because they hit the disabled list, and you certainly don’t drop your best or second-best pitcher due to one or two bad starts out of the gate.

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During his last few years with the Chicago Cubs, new Miami Marlins starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano made headlines for his temper tantrums more than his work on the mound, but the change of scenery will bring Big Z back to relevancy in 2012.

Zambrano is an interesting name for fantasy managers every season. On one hand, he knows how to strike batters out and is a solid veteran; on the other hand, he can be a monster headache with all his random outbursts and foot-in-mouth type of comments.

That being said, the Marlins didn’t go out and acquire the former Cubs hurler without thinking they can control the big man. Who better to control Big Z than manager Ozzie Guillen, right? Exactly.

While I don’t expect Zambrano to pull any more of his usual outbursts during his first year on a new team, if he tries that stuff with Guillen, he’s going to get an earful and then some. There’s no way the new Marlins skipper is going to put up with temper tantrums from anyone but himself.

Zambrano had his worst season in MLB in 2011, and he still posted a 6.2 strikeouts-per-nine-innings ratio. The native Venezuelan is a proven strikeout producer, and he’s a guy I’ve seen go either in the last round of drafts or undrafted in many fantasy leagues.

The newest Miami Marlin is only two seasons removed from a double-digit win year in 2010. Oh, and over his 11 seasons in the big leagues, Big Z strikes out an average of almost eight batters per nine innings.

If you’re sitting there questioning whether or not this former Cubbie is motivated, he’s actually spent the offseason working out according to the Miami Herald. Yes, you read that right: Carlos Zambrano has been working out!

The Herald stated that Zambrano has dropped an estimated two or three pants sizes since we last saw him take the mound. In fact, Big Z told reporter Clark Spencer that the only reason he didn’t keep shedding the weight was because his wife said he was beginning to look ill.

“She says I don’t look good, like I have cancer” the starting pitcher told Spencer.

I’m sure there have been plenty of managers who have been burned by this guy in recent seasons, but you can’t write off a proven veteran who boasts a career average of almost 200 Ks a year.

While I wouldn’t advocate drafting Big Z in, say, the 14th round of your draft or anything, he’ll be available in the final round most likely, and that’s a steal.

Now your league mates aren’t going to pat you on the back or scold you for taking their potential pick when you draft Zambrano, but you’ll have them kicking themselves later in the year when the Marlins hurler becomes one of your biggest strikeout producers.

While the congratulations are nice, it’s much more fun to watch your fellow managers wonder why they didn’t pick Big Z when they had the chance.

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