On Wednesday someone in Las Vegas will announce a preliminary roster for the United States 2009 WBC team. I’ve been putting my own roster together and will continue to do so up until the games start in March. What I want to do now is reveal my own roster along with some predictions of what I think the real roster will look like.

This is meant to be more of an pre-Oscars picks-n-pans light and fluffy kind of piece than a statistics heavy, mechanical analysis — just the basics and an open floor for people to make their own cases, and, once the roster is announced…to vent.

Outfield

Your 2009 WBC Starting Outfield: Matt Holliday, Curtis Granderson, and Josh Hamilton

Backups: Ryan Braun, B.J. Upton, Ken Griffey Jr.

My 2009 Starting Outfield: Holliday, Grady Sizemore, Hamilton

My backups: Granderson, Braun, Brian Giles

I don’t expect a huge difference here, although Sizemore is the best overall player of all the names here and he may not make the team. For the most part, as I’ve argued before, I think defense needs to take precedence over offense on this squad. Plenty of big American bats as compared to most other countries in the WBC. One key will be forgoing the temptation of loading the lineup with people who can hit 40 HRs a year.

However, I consider Hamilton to be the one exception this rule. He isn’t as good a fielder as Giles or Randy Winn, but getting his bat in the lineup is more important than the slight upgrade either of the other two might give in a corner outfield spot.

Left out somewhat unfairly is Nick Markakis, who has the potential to put up an MVP type of 2009. But he’s kind of a lesser version of Hamilton (great bat/average-to-good fielder). I’m not a big believer in Holliday away from Coors, but there’s really no other realistic option to start. Braun would be the second choice, but I’m going with Holliday’s experience in left.

The MLB.com projected squad has Raul Ibanez and Vernon Wells making the cut. Can’t we just pretend they’re Mexican and Canadian? I expect the hi-jinks to come with the addition of Griffey, who as great as he was for the 2006 team, has just slipped too much to be on what is a tight 30 man roster.

Shortstop

Your 2009 WBC Starting Shortstop: Derek Jeter

Backup: Jimmy Rollins

My 2009 Starting Shortstop: Rollins

My backup: Jeter

That Jeter would be chosen to start over Rollins at this point is something of a joke, but there’s a good chance it’ll happen. Brace yourself. Here lies a problem for the U.S. team, which thinks it ought to be good enough to fallback on a legend like Jeter, but truth of the matter is, when you add nationalism to the equation, it’s not really any better than four or five of the other teams.

In general there’s not a lot of talent at SS for the Americans. I’d like to add a third shortstop as a late/extra inning defensive replacement — after Jeter has pinch hit — but guys like Adam Everett and Jason Bartlett are just too one dimensional to take a roster spot. Ideally, Rollins plays all game, every game, and Jeter is used in some kind of “clutch” situation. He’s too big a name to leave off the team completely, and he’s the one guy I’ll allow on the bench as a figurehead.

Thirdbase

Your 2009 WBC Starting Thirdbaseman: Evan Longoria

Backup: David Wright

My 2009 Starting Thirdbaseman: Chipper Jones

My backups: Wright, Longoria

For some reason I see the real team being impulsive about starting Longoria. I like him and everything, but to say that he’s already a better player than Jones or Wright is disrespectful. Jones is still a great fielder, but this is totally overlooked. With room for only six or seven infielders, I see the real team rationalizing leaving Jones home since he’s older and played on the 2006 team. As great as Longoria will be, if he touches Jones’s career numbers he’ll have done very well for himself.

The MLB.com team leaves out both Wright and Longoria, starts Jones and adds Ryan Zimmerman. I’d be very surprised if that happened. Bringing three guys to play third doesn’t make a lot of sense, but Jones can play SS or a corner outfield spot in a pinch. I’m talking a major injury kind of pinch.

Secondbase

Your 2009 WBC Starter: Chase Utley, Dustin Pedroia

Backups: Michael Young

My pick: Utley, Pedroia

My backup: None

I expect some silliness here as well. Young actually started at second over Utley on the 2006 team, and really doesn’t belong on the 2009 team, but he’ll be there. If Utley were healthy for 2009, I think he’d be the clear starter and I think they’d bring both Young and Pedroia.

I wish there was a spot for Brian Roberts, who I think is very underrated as both a hitter and a fielder, but if I’m going to bring both Wright and Longoria, I need to save a roster spot here and keep my fingers crossed Pedroia can play every inning of every game. In a pinch Longoria or Rollins could play second. Again, dicey.

Firstbase

Your 2009 WBC Starter: Ryan Howard

Backup: none

My pick: A platoon of Mark Texeira and Lance Berkman

Backup: none

When the WBC team leaves Berkman at home this March it’s going to be the greatest crime of this selection process. As I wrote here, a platoon of Teixeira and Berkman is just what the Dr. ordered, and using either as a DH or pinch hitter off the bench would be such a great weapon to have. But alas, the powers that be will be swayed by Howard, who isn’t in the same league as a fielder, but hits 5 or 10 HRs per 162 games more than the other two.

Teixeira has already said he’s unlikely to join, so I see the team taking Howard with no backup and at some point ending up with something really dumb like Jason Varitek playing first in inning 12 of the championship game.

Catcher

Your 2009 WBC Starter: Joe Mauer

Backups: Varitek, Brian McCann

My pick: Mauer

Backups: Jason Kendall, Kurt Suzuki

Before you throw your lunch up here’s my reasoning behind bringing Kendall. He was far and away the best fielding catcher in 2008. Mauer is the clear as day choice to start. The MLB.com team has Varitek and…get out the crack pipe…A.J. Pierzynski.

This team needs one “leader,” and Jeter is more than enough of that. “The Captain” was also a “leader” on that seventh place finishing scourge that will be remembered as long as the WBC exists. Bring him as a firstbase coach if you’re that hard up for a grandfather figure.

It’s either McCann or Suzuki as the third catcher, and with Longoria and the Berkman/Teixeira platoon on board, we can sacrifice a little power for a very good fielder and a bat that I think is headed for a breakout season in 2009.

Starting Pitchers

Your 2009 WBC Starting Rotation: Jake Peavy, C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee

Extra 4th starter/Middle Reliever: Mike Mussina

My Picks: Sabathia, Ben Sheets, Cole Hamels

Extra 4th starter/Middle Reliever: Brandon Webb

The stadiums the U.S. team will be playing in at the WBC are as follows: Rogers Centre (slight pitcher’s park), Dolphin Stadium (pitcher’s park) and Chavez Ravine (pitcher’s park). Most of the teams the Americans will encounter do not have the power of a major league club — the Dominicans (who the U.S. would play in Miami) and the Venezuelans (who they’ll play in Toronto) are the exceptions.

Hence, flyballs are going to stay in the park. Sheets and Hamels are great pitchers regardless of the stadium, but taking the parks into consideration, their tendencies to yield flyballs make them easy choices for me. The majority of Asian pitchers are groundball types, which is one reason sidearmers often flourish here. Sheets and Hamels will give them fits. As for the more powerful teams — it’s going to be tough to go deep against the American starters. 

Sabathia comes as the lone lefty and is arguably the best pitcher in baseball at the moment. He takes the hill in Game 1 on March 7 against what will likely be a very lefty-heavy Canadian team. The Canadians are going to be sky high for this game, as they were in 2006 when they shamed the U.S. team in round one.

I hate to leave guys like Lee and Jon Lester out, but there’s just no need for two top lefty starters. Webb is obviously an extreme non-flyball pitcher, but I believe he is the best pitcher in baseball over the last five years. There needs to be a spot for him. I’d like to use him as a stopper, a guy who can come in with a runner on first in any inning.

I don’t have any big problems with Peavy. He’s an intimidating force. But Hamels is a little younger and really impressed me in the playoffs this year. Note I’ve left out Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay. Both have said they won’t play in the WBC. Lincecum would probably make it over Hamels if he wanted to play.

Relievers

Your 2009 WBC Bullpen: Brad Lidge, Jonathan Papelbon, Joe Nathan, Scot Shields, Brian Fuentes, Huston Street, George Sherrill, Dan Wheeler, Ron Villone and Mike Timlin

My Picks: Lidge, Papelbon, Nathan, Bobby Jenks, B.J. Ryan, Ron Mahay, Shields, Fuentes, and Brad Ziegler

This gets tough. The bullpen selection is arguably the most important part of the WBC team, but it’s also a bit of crapshoot. Starters won’t be allowed to go deep into games, and no one is going to be overjoyed with the idea of a possible future Hall of Famer like Webb coming in as a mop-up/long reliever type. So as a result the team needs to take 10 or even 11 relievers. That’s too bad because relievers are unpredictable from year to year as it is, and frankly, there aren’t that many American relivers worthy of being on the team.

I have to start with Lidge. I don’t entirely trust him, but in international play speed does matter. Asian batters do not face anyone who can throw high 90s fastballs for strikes. They certainly don’t see sliders like Lidge’s.

Paplebon, Nathan and the underrated Jenks are also automatic for me. From there, I’m looking at specialists. I’m not a big Fuentes fan, but he’s a lefty and there just aren’t many good, American lefty relief pitchers. In fact, after him you’re looking at the likes of George Sherrill, John Grabow, Ryan and Mahay, none of whom I’m thrilled about bringing. I’m going to play it safe and go with established vets in Mahay and Ryan despite Sherrill’s tendency to give up flyballs. Ryan in particular has great movement running inside to right handed batters that, again, isn’t like anything most of the WBC batters see. Even though he slipped in 2008 I’m going to add Shields. It was either him or Heath Bell.

Finally, I’m also going to go out on a limb and bring Ziegler. He’s only had one good year, and I tend to think sidearm/submarine style pitchers are kind gimmicky in general, but fight fire with fire. The Koreans always have two or three guys throwing like this and it works to great effect versus non-MLB teams. I wouldn’t let Ziegler face a lefty if he paid me, but I like the ability to go to this kind of option in international play.

The MLB.com article adds Joey Devine, J.J. Putz and Joe Saunders to the bullpen.