Jaqua the All Star

Steve Kelley wrote a column on the Forward pairing of Jaqua and Montero, it is well worth the read, but one commenter called to question the suggestion that Jaqua is an All Star.

If MLS goes with 6 All Star Forwards (7 last year), is Nate Jaqua one of them?

We find out for certain tomorrow, but for now, I would think that a Forward that is tied for 5th in Goals and 2nd in Assists has to make that cut.

Expanding on the comment I made at the Seattle Times

It really depends on how many All-Star Forwards MLS goes with this year.

How many MLS Forwards are top 10 in goals and top 8 in assists?
The answer is 3 - Montero, Jaqua, Cummings

How many Forwards have more goals and/or assists than Jaqua?
The answer is 4 - Schelotto, Montero, Casey, Cooper

How many of those are on a team with as good or better a record than Jaqua.
Just one, his own teammate, Fredy Montero.

Last year 28 players were chosen to the All Star Game, seven were Forwards. If people choosing this team don't think that Nate Jaqua has performed as an All Star this season as a top 6-8 Forward in the league, what league are they watching?

For my own PP90 number Jaqua is 6th among MLS forwards with more than 1000 minutes played. Montero is first, and by sizable amount over GBS and Casey.

MLS Last year had the following breakdown by position for its 28 selected
Keeper = 3
Defender = 6
Midfielder = 12
Forward = 7

Is Jaqua among the 7 best Forwards based on this season? Certainly.
There is no silly baseball rule about having a player from each team. Seattle should have 4 to 7 All Stars, based on player and team performance. If there are less than 5 it is only because the league doesn't want the Rave Green to face a 3rd Euro club this year.