Steve Webb
LOS ANGELES — As the All-Star voting heads into the final couple of days, a troubling trend is showing up on the vote totals. Not a single Dodger is leading in their position. Now this is understandable in the case of Gavin Lux. I even get it with our two outfielders Mookie Betts and Chris Taylor. But our two infielders, Max Muncy and Justin Turner should be the starters at their positions.
I already made the case for Justin Turner in an earlier article. Today, my impassioned plea is on behalf of Max Muncy, who currently is trailing the Braves’ Freddie Freeman by quite a lot. Thing is, though, Muncy is having a better year than Freeman, and it’s really not even that close. Let me prove it to you.
Former MVP Freeman’s off year
If you are a dope, you would look at Freeman’s stats and see that he has more RBI than Muncy and think that it must mean he’s having a better year. Nothing could be further from the truth. If anything Freeman is having an off year this year, while Muncy is putting up career-year numbers. Here’s the deal. When the Dodgers last saw Freeman earlier this month, the thought of his starting the All-Star game was ridiculous. He was hitting only around .225 at the time. However, he has gotten hot this month and been able to raise his average to .253. That’s okay, but last year Freeman hit .341. That’s a nearly 90 point drop. Are we going to award that reduced production with an All-Star slot?
Muncy’s just been better
What about Muncy? Well, he had a slow start, too. After the month of April, he was hitting only .222. However, in May, he took off, hitting .330 for the month and blasting ten home runs. He had an injury to deal with in June, which limited his production, but in the last five games, he’s homered three times, and seems to be completely back on track. Muncy’s slashline is better than Freeman’s in every category:
Max Muncy: .264/.418/.556 (OPS .974) Freddie Freeman: .253/.361/.465 (OPS .826)
They both have 17 home runs, so that can’t be in Freeman’s favor. The ONLY stat that Freeman leads Muncy is in RBI, and only by five (43 to 38). And if you consider that Freeman has had seventy more at-bats than Max, it’s clear how that stat came to be skewed in his favor.
I get it. Freeman was the MVP last year, and is a friendly fan favorite. Max Muncy is an Oakland A’s castoff who plays baseball with a chip on his shoulder. Max Muncy isn’t cuddly or lovable like the clean-cut Freeman is. But if you want a hard-nosed ball player, I’ll take Max every time. Let’s vote for Max Muncy, and push him over the top. We’ve got two days left to save the world. Let’s do it!
Voting ends Thursday
Phase 2 will end on Thursday at 2 p.m. ET. At 9 p.m. ET on Thursday night, the starting teams will be announced during the 2021 Google MLB All-Star Starters Reveal on ESPN.
Fans can cast their votes exclusively online at mlb.com/vote, via mobile devices at MLB.com, all 30 club websites, the MLB At Bat and MLB Ballpark mobile apps and on Google Search in the U.S. and Canada by searching “MLB All-Star vote” or “Vote” along with a player’s name. (Fan voting determines the starters at first base, second base, third base, shortstop, catcher and the three outfield spots in each league, plus the designated hitter spot in the AL. Pitchers and reserves for both teams will be determined through a combination of Player Ballot choices and selections made by the Commissioner’s Office.)
