July 5, 2009

(MLB.com) -- When the stars come out in St. Louis on July 14, the summer Midwestern sky might be a little jealous of the turf at Busch Stadium.

With the Gateway Arch in view, the baseball stars lined up on the field for the 80th All-Star Game will provide as pretty a backdrop to a midsummer night as any starry sky could, with a mix of some familiar constellations and a few new celestial bodies lighting up the night.

Hometown hero Albert Pujols leads the parade of stars as the overall leading vote-getter, but he was just one star in a universe of them when the National League and American League All-Star teams were announced Sunday on the MLB All-Star Selection Show presented by Pepsi.

With rosters bumped up to 33 per team this year, Pujols will be joined by three other star first basemen on the National League squad. They will attempt to halt a 12-game unbeaten streak by the American League, which is led by 10-time All-Star Derek Jeter, the top vote-getter in the AL.

The 80th Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8 p.m. ET. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage, while MLB.com will provide extensive online coverage. XM will provide satellite radio play-by-play coverage of the XM All-Star Futures Game.

Starters were determined by fan balloting, with 16 players on each roster being determined by player ballot -- eight pitchers (five starters, three relievers) and eight reserves per league. The remainder of the selections were made by managers Charlie Manuel of the National League and Joe Maddon of the American League -- eight per league, including the 13th pitcher added when rosters were expanded to 33 on Wednesday.

Joining Pujols on the NL squad are three first basemen who could start this year, as well -- San Diego's Adrian Gonzalez, Philadelphia's Ryan Howard and Milwaukee's Prince Fielder. That gives the National League squad a logjam of power at first, with Gonzalez winning out on the player ballot and Howard and Fielder both getting the nod from Manuel.

The AL squad includes 10 first-timers, including standout pitchers Zack Greinke of the Royals and Edwin Jackson of the Tigers, among five chosen by their peers. Maddon selected the other five, including the lone representatives for Baltimore -- outfielder Adam Jones -- and Oakland -- pitcher Andrew Bailey.

The American League starting lineup will include Jeter at shortstop, sharing an all-AL East infield with the Yankees' Mark Teixeira at first, the Red Sox's Dustin Pedroia at second and the Rays' Evan Longoria at third. The Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki, the Rangers' Josh Hamilton and the Red Sox's Jason Bay will start in the outfield. Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer makes the start behind the plate.

Pitchers and reserves on the AL squad include a pair of AL East closers in 10-time All-Star Mariano Rivera of the Yankees and Jonathan Papelbon of the Red Sox, and five of the starters voted in by fans were matched on the player ballot. The players thought Blue Jays second baseman Aaron Hill, Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson and Twins first baseman Justin Morneau were tops at their positions.

The National League starting lineup features an infield crew of Pujols at first, Chase Utley of the Phillies at second, Hanley Ramirez of the Marlins at short and David Wright of the Mets at third. The outfield features the Phillies' Raul Ibanez, the oldest position player to make his All-Star starting debut, along with the Brewers' Ryan Braun and the Mets' Carlos Beltran. The Cardinals' Yadier Molina earned the nod behind the plate.

The NL's pitching staff features reigning Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum of the Giants, two-time winner Johan Santana of the Mets and single-season saves record-holder Francisco Rodriguez of the Mets. The player ballot matched the fan balloting other than at catcher, where the players gave Atlanta's Brian McCann the nod.

The Red Sox, owners of the American League's best record, boast the most All-Stars with six, followed by the Rays with four and the Yankees, Tigers and Twins with three. In the National League, the Mets have the most players on the squad with four, while the Dodgers, Cardinals and defending World Series-champion Phillies all have three each.

Five teams have two starters each -- the Cardinals, Phillies, Mets, Yankees and Red Sox. The A's, Orioles, Indians, White Sox and Royals were limited to one representative in the AL, while the Braves, Cubs, Pirates and Nationals each had only one player on the NL squad.