Kernels show why they have so many all-stars

To the victor goes the spoils.

What that means in the case of the Cedar Rapids Kernels is a lot of all-stars. Rosters for the Midwest League All-Star Game were announced Tuesday, and seven Kernels are on the Western Division team.

No one has more, though Great Lakes has seven in the Eastern Division. Guess that's what happens when you're a first-place ballclub closing in on a first-half championship.

"We've got good players," said Kernels Manager Bill Mosiello after his team's 6-2 win over West Michigan last night at Memorial Stadium. "It's a tribute to them. They've done a great job."

The Kernels (37-21) sliced their magic number for clinching a playoff berth to eight and for winning the division to 10. Cedar Rapids has a three-game lead on second-place Quad Cities and is five up on third-place Clinton.

The top two teams in each division in each half qualify for the postseason. There are 12 games to go in the first half for the Kernels, all of them at Veterans Memorial Stadium, where the club has won 15 in a row.

Nothing is really over until it's over, but you'd have to like the Kernels' chances here.

"You'd like to have a five-game lead with (four to go)," said first baseman Casey Haerther. "You want to be able to clinch fast, then you can enjoy the second half. Play hard and hopefully win the second half, too. But it's good to get your playoff berth out of the way in the first half."

Haerther was named one of the all-star seven, a just reward for a guy who has boosted his batting average to .318 after an awful start. The first baseman hit .349 in May and is 12-for-25 (.480) in June.

The other all-stars are outfielder Mike Trout (the Kernels' only all-star starter), second baseman Jean Segura and pitchers Tyler Skaggs, Jeremy Berg, Fabio Martinez and Garrett Richards.

"We could probably have more than seven," Haerther said. "We're a first-place team. There's a lot of our pitchers going. Our pitching staff is amazing.  They go out there and throw strikes, and that's what allows us to win on a daily basis.

"Michael Trout is Michael Trout. He's going to do his thing. Siggy's had a great year. We're privileged to play on a team like this."

The Kernels and Whitecaps (23-35) play the second game of their three-game series Wednesday night at 7.