AROUND THE HORN
All-Star Game: Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani of the Angels were elected Friday to start in the July 19 All-Star Game along with Mookie Betts and Trea Turner of the host Dodgers. Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk and Marlins second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. were voted to start as firsttime All-Stars, finishing atop their positions in the second round of fan voting. Aaron Judge of the Yankees and Ronald Acuña Jr. of the World Series champion Braves were elected from the first round of balloting as the top vote-getters in their leagues. The AL starting lineup includes Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers and Kirk behind the plate. Giancarlo Stanton of the Yankees joined Judge and Trout in the outfield, while Ohtani was voted in as designated hitter. Ohtani became the first two-way All-Star last year when he was voted the AL DH, then was picked for the pitching staff and started on the mound. NL starters include Cubs catcher Willson Contreras, Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, Chisholm at second, Turner at shortstop, Padres third baseman Manny Machado and an outfield of Betts, Acuña and Giants’ Joc Pederson. Phillies’ Bryce Harper was elected as the National League’s first DH following the expansion of the DH rule to both leagues but will be replaced in the starting lineup after breaking his left thumb when hit by a pitch from Padres’ Blake Snell on June 25. Harper earned his seventh All-Star selection, his sixth as a starter. In addition to Chisholm and Kirk, Anderson, Peterson and Turner were elected for their first All-Star starts.
MLB: Major League Baseball players said Friday for the first time that they are prepared to accept a draft of international amateur players but proposed it include far more money than management’s plan and a more liberal structure. The union made its proposal Friday during a meeting with MLB. The union proposed that a draft be allocated $260 million for the 2024 signing period with teams having to guarantee slot values while having the flexibility to exceed them within bonus pools.
Pirates: The Pirates acquired right-hander Yohan Ramirez from the Guardians for cash and optioned him to Triple-A Indianapolis. Ramirez, 27, has appeared in a combined eight games this season with the Mariners and Guardians. He is 1-0 with a 6.97 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 10 innings.
Brewers: The Brewers placed a ceremonial jersey in their dugout Friday to honor an 8-year-old fan of the team who was wounded during the July Fourth mass shooting in a Chicago suburb. Cooper Roberts took bullets in the chest during the shooting at a parade in Highland Park, Illinois, that left seven dead. His family said his spine was severed and he is paralyzed from the waist down. The Brewers hung a jersey in their dugout with the name Roberts and Christian Yelich’s jersey number, 22. Cooper’s family said Friday that he had regained consciousness for the first time since the shooting. They said doctors don’t believe he suffered any brain damage. “The strength to go through something like that is unimaginable,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said before the team’s game Friday night against the Pirates.