Five Washington Nationals headed to the All-Star Game

The Washington Nationals, who currently hold a 64-24 record, good enough for 2nd best in baseball, will send five players to the All-Star Game held at the New York Mets' Shea Stadium. Three Nationals will be starting in the game as voted on by fans:

C Brian McCann (891,000 votes)

McCann is enjoying a fine season as the Nationals' catcher. Hitting primarily in the three slot McCann is hitting .319 with 17 HRs and 69 RBI's. McCann ranks 3rd among catchers in steals allowed per 9 innings and holds the highest range factor. This is McCann's 2nd All-Star appearance.

SS PJ Phillips (1,596,000 votes)

Phillips is among the leading candidates for National League MVP at the break. In his 3rd professional season, Phillips is enjoying a breakout year. He is batting .340 with 26 HRS and 53 RBIs. Phillips has stolen 35 bases while only being caught 9 times and has scored 88 runs. He leads the NL in runs scored, in slugging percentage (.642), is tied for the lead in steals, is 2nd in home runs to Albert Pujols and is tied for 5th in batting average. This is Phillips' 1st All-Star appearance.

CF Grady Sizemore (1,086,000 votes)

After an unexplained poor season in 2010, Sizemore has bounced back nicely this season. Sizemore is batting .320 with 19 HRs and 56 RBIs. He has stolen 15 times out of 17 tries and scored 78 runs. Sizemore ranks 6th in runs scored and 9th in slugging percentage in the National League. This is Sizemore's 4th All-Star selection.

Two Washington pitchers were selected to the All-Star Game by the New York Mets' manager:

Rich Harden

Harden leads the Major Leagues with a 14-0 record and in ERA at 1.80. In 130.1 innings Harden has collected 143 strikeouts, good for 2nd in the Major Leagues. Opponents are only hitting .205 off Rich, good for 3rd best in the NL. This is Harden's 3rd All-Star game.

Joe Nathan

Nathan and Harden have been arguably the two best pitchers in the Major Leagues. The highlight of the season so far was Nathan's back-to-back starts where he threw a perfect game, followed by a no-hitter. Only one pitcher in Major League history has thrown no-hitters in back-to-back games. Nathan is tied for the ML lead in wins with a 14-4 record. His ERA is 2nd to Harden's at 2.14. In 142 2/3 innings, Nathan has compiled 150 strikeouts leading the Majors. His 4 complete games also lead the Majors. Opponents are only hitting .189 off him, again lowest in the Major Leagues. This is his 2nd All-Star appearance.