Three biggest snubs from International League All-Star roster
By Sam Dykstra / MiLB.com
The International League All-Star team was announced Wednesday, and like any other such list of what’s considered to be the best in any field, it’s as much about who or what’s not included as it is about who is. So, though there were plenty of expected names on the IL roster — Steven Souza, Mike Hessman, Taylor Hill, Anthony Ranaudo and Dan Johnson to name a few — there were plenty of would-be All-Stars that won’t be headed to Durham on July 16, at least as it stands now. (Injuries, promotions, etc., will likely give us a different IL roster than the one released Wednesday.) These are the biggest snubs or, put another way, the next in line to join the IL All-Star squad.
Trevor May, right-handed pitcher, Rochester Red Wings: May already got some big news when he was added to the US Futures Game roster, but that, of course, doesn’t exclude him from participating in the Triple-A All-Star Game too. (Remember, Matt Davidson won both the Futures Game MVP and Triple-A Home Run Derby a day apart last year.)
The 24-year-old right-hander, who struck out 150-plus batters but also posted ERAs north of 4.50 each of the past two seasons in Double-A ball, has broken out in his first foray into Triple-A.
He’s 8–4 with a 2.94 ERA, and those numbers are certainly good. Dig a little deeper, and you’ll find where the real gems of his 2014 season sit. May ranks among the IL’s top five in K/9 (9.2, fourth), WHIP (1.13, fifth), batting average-against (.202, second) and FIP (3.13, second). That last stat is a big one, because it means when you take away defense and look at only what a pitcher primarily controls (strikeouts, walks, home runs), May has been the second-best pitcher in the IL this season.
This might be burying the lede a little bit, but May hasn’t pitched since June 21 due to a calf strain, and that’s what is likely keeping him from the initial IL roster. However on Monday, Twins general manager Terry Ryan said he expects the right-hander to indeed participate in the Futures Game on July 13. Assuming he’ll be healthy for that, he’d also be healthy enough to at least be on the IL squad three days later. He should be on the roster.
Kevin Pillar, outfield, Buffalo Bisons: If you’re going to hit .322 in any league, you’re bound to be considered for the All-Star team, and even if that’s no guarantee, it’s a strong piece of the resume. That’s exactly what Pillar has through 52 games with the Bisons, good enough for second. Despite his time at Triple-A being limited — joyfully on his part, I’m sure — by 26 games in the Majors, he ranks second in the circuit with 22 doubles and has also swiped 11 bases.
Despite those nice numbers, Pillar probably lost out to Louisville’s Felix Perez for the fifth outfield spot on the roster. Perez has better power numbers — a .522 slugging percentage vs. .483, 10 homers vs. two — but that’s his only real statistical advantage over Pillar, who leads in average, OBP and stolen bases. Basically when choosing between the two, it’s pick your pleasure, and when it’s that close, it’s fine to call whoever doesn’t make it a snub.
Yunesky Maya, right-handed pitcher, Gwinnett Braves: You’d be hard-pressed to find seven better starting pitchers in the IL this season, and yet that is how many made it above Maya onto the All-Star roster. For starters, he ranks fourth in the IL with a 2.17 ERA in 15 appearances (12 starts) for the Braves. The former Nationals right-hander has had impressive command as well with a 1.9 BB/9 rate (sixth in the IL), and that’s helped him put up a 3.45 FIP that ranks fifth. His 1.29 WHIP and 6.63 K/9 aren’t nearly as impressive, but they shouldn’t dent his resume enough to keep him off, especially at the cost of keeping off Syracuse left-hander Aaron Laffey who has a worse ERA (2.93), FIP (3.45), K/9 (5.5) and BB/9 (1.93) but is helped by being the league’s only 10-game winner. (Give me numbers that actually deal with pitching over wins, which are reliant on help from the offense, any day.)
If you’d rather compare Maya to a right-hander, consider Durham’s Merrill Kelly, who owns a 3.16 ERA, 3.85 FIP and 2.94 BB/9, each worse than Maya’s numbers. His advantage lies in strikeouts with 8.6 K/9. Even then, I’d still say Maya has the more impressive resume of the three. After May, he could (and should) be one of the first pitchers called if one of the other seven starters aren’t able to go in Durham.
