Rookie sluggers among those grabbing All-Star attention
NEW YORK — Time to pick players for the AllStar Game and make those close calls.
Yankees rookie Aaron Judge and Washington slugger Bryce Harper are among the big names who have undoubtedly secured their spots in Miami on July 11. But there’s a logjam at the corners in the National League, and both rosters are smaller now that the Midsummer Classic no longer determines where the World Series begins.
“I’m OK with this,” Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. “When you’re combining the attempt to play everybody and win the game for the sake of the National League so you get homefield advantage, there’s a lot going on.”
Online voting for the starters ended at midnight Thursday, so let’s take a swing at sorting it all out — ignoring fan and player balloting. Simply our choices.
Both teams get 32 players, including 12 pitchers. That’s down from 34 last year, with at least 13 pitchers. But all 30 clubs still must be represented, and that’s where it really gets tricky.
For the purpose of these selections, we eliminated players expected to remain on the disabled list through Sunday night, when the rosters will be revealed. That means stars like Mike Trout and Dallas Keuchel, who were having All-Star seasons before they got injured, were left out because it’s unclear if they’ll be healthy enough to participate at Marlins Park.
Banged-up players on the cusp of returning to action within a few days were given full consideration.
Maddon will manage the NL squad after guiding the Cubs to a World Series title last season. Cleveland skipper Terry Francona runs the American League team.
Here we go: