This was originally going to be a post ripping Yankee fan about voting Derek Jeter into the All-Star game, despite the fact that the Midsummer Classic is being held in The Bronx.

I mean, a guy who’s batting .282 with four homers shouldn’t be starting in the All-Star Game, right? Not in the American League. And certainly not at shortstop, a position that has transformed into one with many outstanding offensive performers in recent years.

Of course, that was until I looked at the rest of the field. Not a single starting shortstop in the AL boasts a .300 average. Michael Young’s .292 clip is the only one better than Jeter’s. (Young, having one of his weakest offensive seasons, made the AL squad as a reserve.)

And only one shortstop has posted double digit home runs to this point. That would be 12 dingers courtesy of Cleveland’s Jhonny Peralta, who cancels out his modest power totals with a meager .250 batting average.

There’s not even an Omar Vizquel type right now in the AL: a light-hitting shortstop who dazzles you with his glove on a game-by-game basis.

I don’t know if this officially signals the end of the Steroids Era, but this has to be the weakest class of shortstops the Varsity League has seen since Brady Anderson suddenly turned into Willie Mays Hayes, circa Major League 2.

The Golden Age for AL shorstops, of course, came when Jeter was at his peak, A-Rod was still a Ranger, Nomar Garciaparra was actually good and Miguel Tejada was two years younger than he actually is. Remember those days?

I’m all for bringing integrity back to the game, I just hope it doesn’t mean we’re ushering in the next era of Jeff Blausers.