As the time nears for Terry Francona to announce his selections for the 2008 allstar game at Yankee Stadium, I do believe there should be good contingent from the Yankees. Besides Jeter and A-Rod who are the top two vote getters I believe that they should be joined by Mariano Rivera, Mike Mussina, Jason Giambi, and Johny Damon. Damon is hurt so he should be named and he wont even need to play. Mussina is 2nd in the league with 11 wins and showed Francona what he can do last night. Giambi is in top 5 in OPS and HR's and could easily fill in for Ortiz as the DH. A case can be made for Matsui but I do not think that there will be more than 5 Yankees.
Now for Rivera, I believe Francona should honor him and make him the starting pitcher for the game. He has earned it, as he is probably the best pitcher we will ever see. The starters of the game never go more than 2 innings anymore so him going one isnt a big deal. Its his home ballpark and the fans would love it. Plus there will be K-rod or Papelbon to close, so the need for Rivera to pitch 9th isnt huge. I think it would be a great way to honor Mo and let the fans show him some love.
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