There have been so many candidates for the All-Value All-Star Starting Pitcher, with so many pitchers having great seasons. Probably the top of the list right now though is James Shields of the Tampa Bay Rays. You can find the other All-Value All-Stars here:
Catcher - Alex Avila
First Baseman - Michael Morse
Second Baseman - Danny Espinosa
Shortstop - Asdrubal Cabrera
Third Baseman - Ryan Roberts
Outfielder - Curtis Granderson
Outfielder - Lance Berkman
Outfielder - Brennan Boesch
Coming Into The Season
Shields is one of those players who always drives me nuts when I own him. He had the worst season of his career in 2010, going 13-15 with a 5.18 ERA and a league worst 246 hits allowed. While his strikeout numbers were solid (187 in 203 innings), the rest of his numbers were bad enough to scare a lot of owners during their drafts. ESPN had ranked Shields as their #57 starting pitcher coming into the year.
His Performance So Far
Shields is 8-6, but with a 2.47 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and 132 strikeouts in 134 innings pitched. He has also thrown a league-leading 6 complete games and 3 shutouts. Yahoo currently has him as their #5 starting pitcher, and #13 among all players.
Can He Keep This Up?
I'm a bit biased about him, as he always seems to burn me when I own him (and make me mad when I don't). That said, he looks like a candidate for some regression. He has currently stranded 81% of runners, up almost 10% from his career line. That said, his xFIP is 3.07, and his K/9 and BB/9 rates are both in line with career numbers. While he could see a bit of regression, it may not be a ton of it.