I've recently had the opportunity to play a couple of MIJ 54 reissue Strats - early 90's models. My take on these guitars is that they are much better in both sound quality and quality of build - the tuners, body, finish, pickups, feel of the fretboard, frets themselves, all seem of higher quality than the 2010 american standards. Just my. .02. I felt the MIJ models compared quite nicely to my EJ strat.

Not saying there's anything wrong with the American Standards - however, I've played a few recently and was underwhelmed by both the tone and "feel" of the guitar - most of the american standards I've played off the shelf have the strings set too high off the fret board - and the maple boards I've played just do not feel anywhere near as nice as the EJ or the MIJ models I've played (not sure if this is due to the type of frets and/or finish on the neck). Curious if anyone else here has had a similar experience.

Well to be honest, I think I'm on the other side of the fence to you....
I have played several American standards and really liked the feel and sound of them (apart from rosewood fretboard but that's just personal). In fact I prefer the sound of the standard over the deluxe by far, a factor that influence my decision to get the standard. I've never played a MIJ but I do think the standards have a very good quality.