When people talk about the great American League shortstops, they mention Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and Nomar Garciaparra. In reality, the "Big Three" should be reduced to the "Big One" (Rodriguez) and then everybody else.

Physically, no one can match A-Rod, who is a special breed, a unique player at any position. But second on the shortstop list is neither Jeter nor Garciaparra. It's Miguel Tejada.

Two Classy Cardinals

A lot of times when someone passes away, people find only good things to say about the person. Sometimes, the words can be a stretch, but not in Darryl Kile's case. Above all, Darryl was a great guy. There was nothing negative about Darryl. Everybody liked him. He was a man's man, a special person. I always looked forward to seeing him, whether he was in St. Louis or somewhere else, and I enjoyed playing golf with him in the winter. What hurts his teammates the most is that Darryl was one of the best people in the clubhouse -- and now he's no longer around. The Cardinals, and baseball, also lost another great man, Jack Buck. When I first came to the big leagues, he made me feel like I was Stan Musial. He made all the players feel that way. A lot of broadcasters are homers, but Jack was a "baseball" broadcaster who gave everybody the credit they deserved, whether they wore a Cardinals uniform or not. He was always great to talk to before the game; I can't say that about every announcer. Jack was completely different from any announcer I've been around. Jack and Darryl will be greatly missed and never forgotten. -- Joe Morgan

Tejada has been among the league's elite shortstops, hitting more than 30 homers and driving in more than 100 runs in both 2000 and 2001. Only A-Rod has better numbers during the same period.

Of the young players the A's have produced in recent years, including Jason Giambi, Tejada has the most unlimited ability and the greatest potential. While Giambi commands the spotlight with his hitting, that is all he is -- a hitter.

Meanwhile, Tejada is a complete player, one who can hit, run and play defense. And he is durable despite playing a demanding position; he will play Thursday in his 348th straight game, a new Oakland franchise record.

During the A's current hot streak, which has brought them within three games of Seattle in the AL West, Tejada has produced near-Giambi-like numbers hitting in the No. 3 spot. Among major-league shortstops, he is third in RBI (56), second in home runs (15), second in runs (52) and second in hits (93).

Caught in the shortstop crunch
In the fan voting for the All-Star Game, Tejada is only seventh among American League shortstops. The number of votes a player receives is often a product of where he plays, and the Oakland A's draw few fans, ranking 21st this season in major-league attendance.

Other than A-Rod, who is a lock as the starting shortstop, AL manager Joe Torre has some hard choices to make between Tejada, Jeter, Garciaparra and Omar Vizquel. Tejada could be left out.

Because Torre is the manager, Jeter will be picked, even though his numbers aren't even close to Tejada's. Garciaparra is a likely selection because, with 58 RBIs, he has been a consistent run producer. Vizquel, a perennial Gold Glove winner, is producing career-best power numbers. Yet even though he could represent the Indians in Milwaukee, I still don't believe he is a match for the others at the plate.

When I evaluate players as All-Stars, I consider the player's first-half performance and his career reputation equally. This season, if I were voting, I would pick A-Rod as the starter, then Tejada, who has stepped into the A's offensive leadership role in Giambi's absence. As the third shortstop, I would select Jeter over Garciaparra in what would almost be a coin-flip decision.

Based on statistics alone, Garciaparra is far better than Jeter. But there is more to the game than just numbers. Being a proven winner gives Jeter the nod. Never discount winning, the most important aspect of the game. Garciaparra has never won in Boston and is less durable than the other shortstops. Playing for a championship team like the Yankees is tougher than playing for any other team. Jeter endures more pressure than the other shortstops.

Baseball fans may have overlooked Tejada. But by Sunday, Tejada may force Torre to find a spot for him -- even if it means taking four shortstops.

What about Zito?
With so many quality choices at shortstop, I can understand if Tejada, the A's best everyday player, is left off the All-Star team. But not their best pitcher, Barry Zito, as well.

Torre said he won't pick a starting pitcher who pitches the Sunday before the All-Star Game. That would exclude Zito, who is scheduled to start that day. A's manager Art Howe called Torre's decision "a crock," and I agree. If a player deserves to be an All-Star, he should be chosen -- end of discussion.

Torre will be picking his 21 reserves Sunday for the "Major League Baseball All-Star Selection Show" on ESPN. What happens if Zito ends up not pitching that Sunday? What if there is a rainout? Then what would Torre do?

It's not fair to Zito, who has been the A's most consistent starter all season. The All-Star Game is for the fans, who should see the game's best players. There have not been 10 American League pitchers -- starters or relievers -- who have done their jobs better than Zito has.

A's change ways for the better
The A's, like the Dodgers in the National League, are proving me wrong. I felt Oakland would be too inconsistent to catch Seattle because I thought the A's would stick to their offensive philosophy, which favors players who walk a lot and hit home runs.

Once they traded Jeremy Giambi to Philadelphia, the A's have wisely tried to get more speed at the top of the order -- first with rookie Esteban German (who is back in Sacramento) and now with another rookie, Mark Ellis, in the leadoff spot and Tejada hitting third.

At the beginning of the season, the A's first four hitters were Jeremy Giambi, Frank Menechino, Scott Hatteberg and David Justice. In other words, they had four consecutive slow players who were likely to either hit or run into a double play at any moment.

The A's offensive philosophy hurt Tejada early in the season. As a player who draws few walks, Tejada was hitting either fifth or sixth in the order. But the thought all along should have been to put Tejada -- the more proven, complete and productive player -- at No. 3 instead of Hatteberg, a player who has never driven in more than 44 runs in a season.

Tejada can be a perfect No. 3 hitter over his career because he can run, hit, hit with power and drive in runs. He may not draw many walks, but I would rather have a No. 3 hitter who drives in runs than one who walks yet can't run the bases. Plus, I have always said it is tougher to drive in runs than it is to score runs. Tejada does both.

The race is on
The A's are scoring runs and getting quality pitching to complement Zito. We need to wait and see if Mark Mulder's arm can hold up, if Tim Hudson can end his run of inconsistency and if Cory Lidle and rookie Aaron Harang can pitch capably as the No. 4 and No. 5 starters.

Lidle had a nice outing against Seattle on Monday, but before that he was 1-6, his last win coming on April 26. He doesn't have the same track record as Mulder, Zito and Hudson. It is still debatable whether or not the A's pitching can continue its current level of dominance.

Seattle has forced every other AL West team to raise their games. The A's and the Anaheim Angels have risen to the challenge and played out of their minds to close the gap in the standings. But as they have drawn closer, how many times has either team played Seattle? None -- until this week. Instead, they have been beating up on National League teams; the A's have gone 14-1 in interleague play, and the Angels 9-6.

The A's are getting their shot at the Mariners now. But until the A's and the Angels show they can handle Seattle, you can't say the AL West is anything but a three-team race.

Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan is a baseball analyst for ESPN and contributes a weekly column to ESPN.com.