Home Run Derby

I am excited for the All Star Game and Home Run Derby. Yes, the AL team is dominated by Orioles, Yankees, and Red Sox. But that's because these players have been putting up the numbers for the big teams. If the AL best White Sox could match the star power of the AL East, they'd have a couple of starters too. I do have a small problem with the Home Run Derby lineup. They have decided to take a representative from eight countries that are represented in the MLB. The players that we will see tonight will be exciting, for the most part. However, only 3 of the 8 are starting in the ASG tomorrow night.

The line up is: Bobby Abreu, Jason Bay, Hee-Seop Choi, Andruw Jones, Carlos Lee, David Ortiz, Ivan Rodriguez, and Mark Texeira. In my opinion, Ortiz, Jones, and Texeira are good. Hee-Seop Choi is tied for 51st and Jason Bay is tied for 30th in the home run column, so they're out. The Yankees, Orioles, and Cardinals, 3 of the teams with the most ASG Reps, have no HR Derby representation. Hmm... the fans apparently love those teams, so why aren't they in the Derby? While Ivan Rodriguez is the only Tiger in the ASG, he has 6 home runs so far. That's one less than the number of HRs Jason Giambi has hit in 32 games. If the Tigers have to be represented, why not give non-All Star Dimitri Young a spot. How fucking awesome would it be to see David Ortiz and "The Best Player in Baseball According to Kevin" in the finals. The tiebreaker could be a hot dog eating competition. If it is unfair to give a non-All Star a spot, then give the HR Derby spot to someone more deserving than Rodriguez.

Since I am the authority on so many things in sports, and because I am positive that the Major League cares what I have to say, I came up with my own HR Derby roster. There is a little bit of debate over the last spot due to injuries, evening the AL/NL representatives, and the "Should the Tigers get a spot?" debate. My list contains 4, 5, or even 6 All Star Game starters.
Definite:
Andruw Jones
Mark Texeira
Alex Rodriguez (As much as I hate him, he is one of the biggest names in baseball)
Albert Pujols
Daaaaaavid ORTIZ!
Morgan Ensberg - Replaces Choi or Bay as a "lesser known from the NL" because he has hit more dingers
Miguel Tejada

Choose One:
Dimitri Young - if the Tigers must get a spot and a non-All Star is allowed
Paul Konerko - A lot of HRs and he's from the best team in MLB right now
Derrek Lee - I'm pretty sure his injury is keeping him out of the Derby
Bobby Abreu - Maybe MLB was right.... nah