It’s baseball’s answer to a tradition unlike any other.
Has anyone bailed on the All-Star Game yet?
My 64 All-Stars are listed below. As always, I’m adhering to the rule that every club must be represented, that each All-Star team must feature 20 position players and 12 pitchers, at least three of whom are relievers. Readers will howl over this injustice or that, but by now everyone should know better.
Even the league’s official announcement of the full rosters on Sunday should only be considered a first draft. Players will bow out because of injuries, real and imagined. Pitchers who start the Sunday before the Tuesday affair can be replaced. A year ago, 77 players — nearly one-tenth the league — were named All-Stars. If your favorite gets snubbed, just wait. He will still be only one phone call away from heading to Atlanta.
In making my choices, I was largely governed by what I wrote a year ago; I’m something of an Entertainment Truther. Yes, I try to honor first-half performance. But let’s not forget, this game is a promotional vehicle, not a declaration of WAR. I want the biggest names, the rising stars, the players most likely to evoke oohs and aahs.
Of course some will find inconsistencies in my choices, but life is full of inconsistencies. I won’t pretend this list is perfect. Consider it merely a starting point for whatever argument you want to make, about any player you want to make.
My starters are highlighted. All statistics cited are through the end of June. As always, your vitriol is welcome in the comments section below or at my X handle, @Ken_Rosenthal.
American League
Starting pitchers
Detroit Tigers
Houston Astros
New York Yankees
Boston Red Sox
Texas Rangers
Kansas City Royals
Chicago White Sox
Notable omissions: Seth Lugo, Kansas City Royals; Drew Rasmussen, Tampa Bay Rays; Carlos Rodón, New York Yankees; Joe Ryan, Minnesota Twins; Framber Valdez, Houston Astros; Bryan Woo, Seattle Mariners.
Rasmussen, who has overcome three major elbow surgeries to rank 10th in the AL in ERA, would be an inspired selection. But I chose Smith, a Rule 5 pick who was fantastic until his three most recent starts as my White Sox pick, over first baseman/third baseman Miguel Vargas, who recovered well from a difficult first month. Neither is particularly deserving, but every team must be represented by golly, so here we are.
Relief pitchers
Houston Astros
Boston Red Sox
Houston Astros
Seattle Mariners
Kansas City Royals
Notable omissions: Jhoan Duran, Minnesota Twins; Griffin Jax, Minnesota Twins; Tommy Kahnle, Detroit Tigers; Chris Martin, Texas Rangers; Steven Okert, Houston Astros; Cade Smith; Cleveland Guardians; Luke Weaver, New York Yankees; Steven Wilson, Chicago White Sox.
Almost impossible to choose between these relievers. Every notable omission has a statistical argument in one form or another, and a number of others warrant mention as well.
Catchers
Seattle Mariners
Toronto Blue Jays
Notable omission: Carlos Narváez, Boston Red Sox
Raleigh obviously is ridiculous. Narváez, acquired in an under-the-radar trade from the Yankees, is a fun story and the most unheralded and best of the Red Sox rookies to debut this season. But Kirk is enjoying an offensive resurgence, and his defense remains outstanding. He currently rates as the best framer in the game.
First basemen
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
Notable omission: Paul Goldschmidt, New York Yankees; Vinnie Pasquantino, Kansas City Royals; Spencer Torkelson, Detroit Tigers.
Goldschmidt had a terrific start, but his .464 OPS in June was the 17th worst in the majors. Torkelson wasn’t as bad, but he, too, was better, in the opening months. Pasquantino was just the opposite, rallying from a difficult start.
Aranda might not be a familiar name, but he ended June ranked 11th in the majors in OPS, just ahead of Juan Soto and Freddie Freeman — and more than 60 points ahead of Guerrero (.903-841).
Second basemen
Detroit Tigers
Tampa Bay Rays
Notable omission: Jackson Holliday, Orioles.
Lowe finished June with 18 homers to Torres’ nine, but rated as one of the worst defensive second basemen in the majors. Holliday’s time will come, just not yet. His OPS was nearly 100 points lower than Torres’ and Lowe’s.
Shortstop
Houston Astros
Athletics
Kansas City Royals
Notable omissions: Javier Báez, Detroit Tigers; Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles; Zach Neto, Los Angeles Angels.
Peña, the MVP of the AL West-leading Astros, went on the injured list Monday with a fractured rib, putting his availability in question. Báez, a Comeback Player of the Year candidate, would be the sentimental choice to replace him, but Neto is an emerging star and Henderson is coming off a monster June.
Third basemen
Cleveland Guardians
Tampa Bay Rays
Houston Astros
Notable omissions: Maikel Garcia, Kansas City Royals; Miguel Vargas, Chicago White Sox.
Caminero’s on-base percentage is barely above .300, but his 21 home runs are the most of any AL third baseman. Garcia leads both Paredes and Caminero in OPS, but lacks their power and is more of a utility player than a regular third baseman.
Garcia also would make four Royals, giving KC one more representative than the Tigers while trailing them by 14 games. Five Astros vs. three Tigers? Not optimal, but acceptable.
Outfielders
New York Yankees
Minnesota Twins
Detroit Tigers
Boston Red Sox
Los Angeles Angels
Toronto Blue Jays
Notable omissions: Randy Arozarena, Seattle Mariners; Cody Bellinger, New York Yankees; Zach McKinstry, Detroit Tigers; Steven Kwan, Cleveland Guardians; Cam Smith, Houston Astros.
Springer was a worthy Comeback Player of the Year candidate even before he hit two home runs against the Yankees on Tuesday, including a grand slam. Adell, the Angels’ lone representative, finished June with a higher OPS than all of the notable omissions.
Designated hitters
Athletics
Baltimore Orioles
Notable omissions: Yandy Díaz, Tampa Bay Rays.
O’Hearn tailed off in June. Díaz led the majors for the month with a .400 batting average. Rooker has been the most consistent of the three.
National League
Starting pitchers
Philadelphia Phillies
Washington Nationals
Milwaukee Brewers
San Francisco Giants
Atlanta Braves
Pittsburgh Pirates
San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers
Notable omissions: Andrew Abbott, Cincinnati Reds; Matthew Boyd, Chicago Cubs; Sonny Gray, St. Louis Cardinals; Clay Holmes, New York Mets; Nick Pivetta, San Diego Padres; Cristopher Sánchez, Philadelphia Phillies; Spencer Schwellenbach, Atlanta Braves; Ranger Suárez, Philadelphia Phillies.
Skenes is Skenes, but Wheeler deserved the 2021 NL Cy Young Award over Corbin Burnes and also finished second in ’24 to Sale. It’s time he gets his rightful due, particularly when in five June starts his ERA was 0.58.
Then again, if we’re going strictly by ERA, Boyd, Sánchez, Holmes and Schwellenbach all are ahead of Gore among qualifiers. The omissions of Abbott, Boyd and Schwellenbach feel particularly egregious, but one figures to replace Sale. Gore makes my initial list because his strikeout rate ranks second only to Wheeler’s in the NL.
Relief pitchers
New York Mets
Cincinnati Reds
San Francisco Giants
San Diego Padres
Notable omissions: Jason Adam, San Diego Padres; David Bednar, Pittsburgh Pirates; Jake Bird, Colorado Rockies; Kyle Finnegan, Washington Nationals; Phil Maton, St. Louis Cardinals; Trevor Megill, Milwaukee Brewers; Adrian Morejon, San Diego Padres; Dennis Santana, Pittsburgh Pirates; Abner Uribe, Milwaukee Brewers.
With the exception of Rodríguez, I might be leaning too heavily into save totals. Suarez arguably has not even been the Padres’ best reliever. Still, closers merit extra consideration for a reason — they’re the ones their managers trust to pitch the ninth inning. And yes, the distinction still matters.
Catchers
Los Angeles Dodgers
Colorado Rockies
Notable omissions: Carson Kelly, Chicago Cubs; Agustín Ramírez, Miami Marlins.
Bet you didn’t know Smith is the NL player who finished June second to Shohei Ohtani in OPS. If he can avoid his usual post All-Star Game decline, a top-five MVP finish is possible.
Goodman’s 16 home runs and .869 OPS make him the Rockie of choice. Kelly was mostly an April phenomenon, while Ramírez finished June leading all NL rookies with 12 home runs and 28 extra-base hits.
First basemen
New York Mets
Los Angeles Dodgers
Notable omissions: Michael Busch, Chicago Cubs; Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies; Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves; Josh Naylor, Arizona Diamondbacks.
Impressive group. Alonso ended June ranked fifth in the NL in OPS, Freeman ninth, Busch 11th, Olson 18th and Naylor 20th.
Here’s something crazy: This is Bryce Harper’s seventh season with the Phillies, and only two of his eight All-Star selections have come in a Philadelphia uniform. Injuries, and the cancellation of the game in 2020, are largely responsible.
Harper missed a chunk of 2022 with a fractured left thumb, got a late start in ’23 coming off Tommy John surgery and just returned from an absence of more than three weeks with right wrist inflammation.
Second basemen
Arizona Diamondbacks
St. Louis Cardinals
Notable omission: Brice Turang, Milwaukee Brewers.
Marte missed nearly a month with a strained left hamstring, but with an OPS of nearly 1.000, he is easily the best second baseman in the NL. Donovan is more a super-utility man than a regular, but he arguably is the Cardinals’ best player. Turang is the reigning NL Platinum Glove winner, but his offense is not at the level of the other two.
Shortstops
Cincinnati Reds
New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies
Notable omissions: CJ Abrams, Washington Nationals; Gerardo Perdomo, Arizona Diamondbacks; Masyn Winn, St. Louis Cardinals.
Commence your outrage, Mets fans. Lindor looked like a deserving starter after the first two months, but his OPS in June was .628 and his overall mark ranked just 35th in the NL. He still should be on the team for the first time in five years as a Met, but at this rate all those fans who were clamoring for his selection will be booing him soon.
Turner’s season is sneaky good, maybe even better than De La Cruz’s. But we’ll go with Electric Elly, who warrants the spotlight on the national stage.
Third basemen
Arizona Diamondbacks
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
Notable omission: None.
Tough picking the starter. Suárez ended June second in the NL to Shohei Ohtani in home runs and tied with the Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki for the league lead in RBIs. Muncy recovered from a .610 OPS in March/April to pop an .851 in May and a 1.113 in June. And then there is Machado, the biggest star of the three and still brilliant as he nears his 33rd birthday.
Suárez has never started an All-Star Game. His only appearance was in 2018. Here’s to one of the good guys in the game.
Outielders
Chicago Cubs
Chicago Cubs
Washington Nationals
Ariona Diamondbacks
New York Mets
Miami Marlins
Wood over Soto? The 22-year-old prodigy over the $765 million man? Sounds crazy, especially when Soto’s 1.196 OPS in June was the second best for any month of his career. But for the season Wood still has Soto beat in OPS, fWAR, bWAR, you name it. Yes, Soto is the bigger name. But the kid the Nationals once acquired for him is closing the gap pretty quickly.
Carroll, currently on the injured list with a chip fracture in his left wrist, might need to be replaced. If it happens, what a perfect spot for Ronald Acuña Jr., who after returning from his second major knee surgery on May 23 quickly regained his MVP form. Fans in Atlanta would go nuts.
Notable omissions: Acuña; Andy Pages, Los Angeles Dodgers; Heliot Ramos, San Francisco Giants; Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres.
Designated hitters
Los Angeles Dodgers
Philadelphia Phillies
Notable omission: Rafael Devers, San Francisco Giants; Seiya Suzuki, Chicago Cubs.
Remember when Red Sox manager Alex Cora was hailing Devers as the best DH in the American League?
Those were the days!
(Top photo of this year’s All-Star Game logo: Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)