All-stars...so Far

FIRST BASE
Mark McGwire, Cards
HRs 36 RBIs 86 BA .312
McGwire stands alone as a power hitter, but he's just one of the stars at baseball's most loaded position, first base. Consider: Mo Vaughn has made as many All-Star Games (two) as journeyman outfielder Roberto Kelly; Rafael Palmeiro hasn't been to one in seven years. The emergence of Darin Erstad (whose future is in the outfield) further upgrades the position. Arizona's Travis Lee has the highest ceiling among an unusually large rookie class that includes Montreal's Brad Fullmer, Colorado's Todd Helton, Florida's Derrek Lee, Minnesota's David Ortiz and Cincinnati's Sean Casey.

CLOSER
Robb Nen, Giants
W-L 5-1 ERA 1.05 SAVES 23
A chart of the typical career path of a closer would look like a roller coaster. Last week Mark Wohlers, who had 72 saves in the past two seasons, was working out with a rookie league team; Tom Gordon, who was cuffed around as a starter in recent years, was among the major league leaders in saves. The top four saves leaders in the National League at week's end- Trevor Hoffman, Robb Nen, Jeff Shaw and Ugueth Urbina—had exactly zero All-Star appearances combined. The best of them has been Nen, a 32nd-round pick and a failed starter who has been traded twice. Of course.

SHORTSTOP
Alex Rodriguez, Mariners
HRs 27 RBIs 66 BA .314
Imagine you are Oakland's enormously talented rookie Miguel Tejada. You dream of playing in the All-Star Game one day. You might as well try getting Packers season tickets. The line is long, and it's not moving. Nomar Garciaparra, who turns 25 this month, Derek Jeter, 24, and Rodriguez, 23 this month and the best of the bunch, may already be better than the Ripken-Yount-Trammell triad that preceded them. They've transformed shortstop into the game's glamour position. Tejada, 22; the Marlins' Edgar Renteria, 22; the Rockies' Neifi Perez, 23; and the White Sox's Mike Caruso, 21, can only add to the luster.

SECOND BASE
Damion Easley, Tigers
HRs 19 RBIs 58 BA .292
This was supposed to be the golden age of second basemen. The 1992 American League All-Star team included Carlos Baerga, Roberto Alomar and Chuck Knoblauch, all of whom turned 24 that year. Now, when they should be hitting their prime, all three seem to be on the decline. Not so Easley, age 24, who has had a breakthrough first half and typifies the premium placed on offense at what used to be a defensive-minded position. However, though Easley has outperformed him at the plate in the first half of this season, Craig Biggio remains the best all-around second baseman in baseball.

OUTFIELD

Sammy Sosa, Cubs
HRs 32 RBIs 78 BA .328

Ken Griffey Jr., Mariners
HRs 32 RBIs 7l BA .283

Juan Gonzalez, Rangers
HRs 24 RBIs 96 BA .297

Thirteen of the last 22 Most Valuable Player awards have gone to outfielders. Yet of the first 12 players to crack the 60-RBI mark this season, only four were outfielders—Gonzalez, Sosa, Griffey and Greg Vaughn—suggesting a shift in the balance of power. Gonzalez and Sosa played in the same outfield for four different minor league teams over their first three-plus pro seasons before the Rangers traded Sosa to the White Sox. Yet Gonzalez is more closely linked to Griffey (the two, along with Alex and Ivan Rodriguez, are our only All-Stars to have spent their careers with a single team). Born 36 days apart in 1969, constantly chasing home run and RBI titles together, Gonzalez and Griffey could be the Aaron and Mays of their generation.

CATCHER
Ivan Rodriguez, Rangers
HRs 10 RBIs 43 BA .358
Jorge Posada of the Yankees is slowly developing into a solid young catcher—and six-time All-Star Rodriguez is three months younger than Posada. At 26, Rodriguez just keeps getting better. Mike Piazza may want to be known someday as the best offensive catcher ever, but Rodriguez has the whole game. The shortage of topflight talent at the position would be acute if not for Puerto Rico, the cradle of catchers. The small island has produced a boomlet of backstops: Rodriguez, Posada, Sandy Alomar, Javy Lopez and Minnesota's Javier Valentin.