If it's possible for someone to get snubbed from the All-Star Game three times, we're pretty sure Kevin Youkilis has. First, he was left off the original roster voting. Then he lost the Final Fan Voting to the Yankees' Nick Swisher. And now, he's been overlooked for a third time, when A.L. manager Joe Giradi picked the White Sox' Paul Konerko to replace the injured Justin Morneau.
A few quick comparisons:
- Youkilis: .293 BA, .408 OBP, .579 SLG%, 18 HR, 157 OPS+, 3.4 WAR
- Konerko: .299 BA, .380 OBP, .559 SLG%, 20 HR, 147 OPS+, 2.0 WAR
"It's a hard choice to make. I could have taken him or Youkilis Konerko's hitting slightly higher, has a couple more home runs and couple more RBIs. I went with Konerko. They both deserve to be there; that's the problem with this," Girardi said.
The Yankees manager said his decision had nothing to do with Youkilis being a member of the Red Sox and the rivalry between the teams.
"I'm looking at the numbers, the numbers are close and one guy's numbers are a little bit better," he said. "I took the guy whose numbers are a little bit better."