Cubs get record 7 on NL all-star team

ST. LOUIS - Ryan Dempster uttered the word "awesome" about 26 times.

Geovany Soto termed his feeling as "surreal."

But the bottom line Sunday was that most Cubs felt they deserved to have a club-record seven players chosen for the July 15 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium.

"Awesome, awesome," said Dempster, a second-time all-star who has made the transition from closer back to starting pitcher. "I mean, we've got a good team, right? We've got one of the best records in baseball, and we've been playing well all year, and it's because of all these guys in here putting all the hard work in."

Three Cubs were voted in as starters by the fans: catcher Soto and outfielders Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome.

The reserves are third baseman Aramis Ramirez, Dempster and pitchers Kerry Wood and Carlos Zambrano.

The Cubs broke more than one record. The previous record for Cubs all-stars was six, set in 1988 and 1936. Soto becomes the first rookie catcher in NL history to be elected to start an All-Star Game and the first Cubs catcher to start the game since Gabby Hartnett in 1937.

The 25-year-old Soto spent most of last year at Class AAA Iowa, getting into only 18 games with the big-league club.

"It feels surreal," he said. "Me trying to make the club and feeling really good and then going to the All-Star Game. It feels awesome. I don't know how to feel."

A year ago, Soto played in the Futures Game right before the All-Star Game. Although his future is now, he said he could not have imagined this.

"No chance," he said. "I just tried to play hard and tried to make it. I just wanted to give my all and see what happens. I'm really honored by this.

"Our fans are the greatest in the world"

In contrast to many modern-day players, all of the Cubs all-stars seemed genuinely happy to be going.

"It's an honor to represent the National League," said Zambrano, who was busy calling friends and family. "Not only me, my teammates going to New York. Hopefully we can do our job and we can take homefield advantage."

Zambrano was referring to the winning league of the All-Star Game getting home field in the World Series. Cubs manager Lou Piniella didn't want to get that far ahead of things, but he seemed satisfied his club will be heavily represented.

"They've done nice jobs, and they've been rewarded," said Piniella, a former Yankee who will serve as one of NL manager Clint Hurdle's coaches. "I'm very pleased that we have such a large turnout. Talking to Clint, he's very interested in the National League winning this game."

Soriano, who finished second to Milwaukee' Ryan Braun, probably won't play, but he says he'll go to New York. Soriano took batting practice Saturday but said afterward his left hand felt "weak." He's rehabbing from a broken bone, suffered June 11.

"That's the stadium that I started at; I played for the Yankees for three years," he said. "To go back for the last time, that's very huge for me."

Fukudome earned all-star honors in his rookie season after nine years in Japan.

"I'm very honored to be elected in my first year in the major leagues by the fans," he said. "I didn't expect this at all."

For Wood and Dempster, the all-star berths represent a role reversal of sorts. Wood, who pitched 1 inning in the 2003 All-Star Game at U.S. Cellular Field, is a former starting pitcher turned closer. Dempster made the 2000 NL team for Florida as a starting pitcher. He was the Cubs' closer from 2005-07 before returning to the rotation this year.

"It's something new for me and very rewarding," Wood said.

Dempster did not pitch in the 2000 game, but he still remembers how Braves manager Bobby Cox treated him afterward.

"I walked all the way back from right field and down through the dugout there in Turner Field," Dempster said. "Bobby Cox was waiting in the tunnel, and basically shook my hand and said, 'Sorry I didn't get you in there.' It was a 3-2 game. He's like, 'I know you could have gone a couple innings,' because I hadn't pitched in a few days. 'I needed to save you in case we tied it. You'll get back (to the All-Star Game) and pitch in another one.'

"I thought that was one of the classiest things to happen in my career, for a manager to wait there. He was right. It just took awhile to get back."