A's Marcus Semien, Liam Hendriks Deserving of MLB All-Team Honors

[CSNBY] A's Marcus Semien, Liam Hendriks deserving of MLB All-Team honors
Jessica Kleinschmidt

Major League Baseball has initiated the first-ever All-MLB Team. This was put forth for fans to vote on their favorite players from the 2019 seasons' entirety.

This is a bit like the All-Star selections only that, in this case, it's not in the middle of the season, and with these, there are both first and second teams. Also, this team will not be broken up by leagues and players were previously nominated -- pretty cool, right?

I voted for my 2019 All-MLB Team and here are my results:

New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso put on a show at the plate this season and during the Home Run Derby. Sure, we dig the long ball, but we also appreciate a guy who shows his emotions when he does something great on the field such as setting a rookie home run record with 53 home runs this season.

The middle-infielders as of late have become these gems filled with power -- a characteristic we didn't see in the earlier eras of the game. 

For the second base position, Houston Astros' José Altuve proved once again why he is a constant force to be reckoned with. The six-time All-Star finished his 2019 campaign slashing .298/.353/.550 with 31 home runs and 74 RBI in 124 games. 

Marcus Semien was the vote at the shortstop position. While there were plenty that could have also been voted to have the honors (Jorge Polanco and Xander Bogaerts should not go unmentioned) Semien was such a fascinating player this season.

Sure, there's a slight bias over here, but imagine having someone only get better as the season went on. Semien started in all 162 games this season so he showed no signs of tiring and finished with 33 homers which doubled last season's long balls. He was also in AL MVP talks getting third place in the votes behind Mike Trout and Alex Bregman. 

Semien didn't receive All-Star honors this season which is a shame, he deserves something after the show he put on.

Speaking of Bregman ... he was voted at the third base slot in a category that was the toughest to select across the roster.

He, Matt Chapman and Nolan Arenado each put up a phenomenal season and reminded you just why it was called the hot corner.

For Bregman, he was sensational across the board in each hitting category. A .296 average with 41 homers and a 1.015 OPS. Arenado matched Bregman's long ball numbers with 41, but ya know -- Coors. 

And that energy is contagious.

Outfielders were easy to vote for.

Trout, Cody Bellinger and Christian Yelich. I really hope you guys won't argue with me on that one.

The starting pitchers, for the most part, hosted arms from the final two teams still playing October baseball. Justin Verlander earned his second Cy Young Award posting a 2.58 ERA with 300 strikeouts in 223 innings and an MLB-leading 0.803 WHIP.

Well deserved. 

Verlander's former teammate Gerrit Cole was behind him in Cy Young voting and led the league with a 2.50 ERA and an overall MLB-leading 326 strikeouts and 13.8 strikeouts per walk rate.

Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg were also voted -- and once again, I hope there are no arguments there. If there is, I have plenty of photos of them drenched in champagne celebrating a World Series championship to back me up.

Former A and current Cincinnati Red Sonny Gray may not have put up a season as he did in 2015, but he dropped his ERA drastically from his 2018 campaign boasting a 2.87 ERA with the Redlegs. His season deserved to be recognized.

From the bullpen, A's Liam Hendriks got a vote because he not only put up the numbers but switched to closer role responsibilities and did it smoothly and masterfully.

[RELATED: Hendriks shift in energy factors in success with A's]

He shut out his 2019 All-Star season with a 1.80 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 85 innings with a 0.965 WHIP.

How'd I do? Let me know.

The winners for first and second-team honors will be announced at this year's Winter Meetings in San Diego. 

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