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The people have spoken, and they made it clear they like champions. One-third of the 18 elected All-Star Game starters played in the World Series last season. None are bad choices. After all, it’s the ultimate game for fans.
Going strictly on merit, however, to pick my deserving All-Star starters, I disagree on half of the elected starters.
My picks reflect the game of baseball today. It’s a young man’s game. Of my 18 All-Star selections, only six are older than 29, including a Midsummer Classic Rock reunion of Mike Trout and Bryce Harper, who last played in the same All-Star Game eight years ago.
Of the 12 drafted players among my picks, seven were first-round picks and none were found after the fifth round. Six were signed as international free agents from four countries: Cuba, Japan, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela.
Here are my All-Star starters, including where noted when I opted for a different choice than the fans’ pick.
American League
C: Dillon Dingler, Tigers, over Shea Langeliers, Athletics
Dingler has the better numbers across the board by narrow margins, but the defense is the biggest separator between the two. Dingler ranks in the 97th and 98th percentiles in blocking and framing.
1B: Nick Kurtz, Athletics, over Vlad Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays
This is not close, especially because Guerrero has had trouble getting the ball in the air with any authority.
2B: Ernie Clement, Blue Jays
No problem here. Clement leads AL second basemen in OPS and leads the league with 22 doubles.
SS: Bobby Witt Jr., Royals
He leads the league in WAR and stolen bases, plays hard every day and can change a game in more ways than most players.
3B: Junior Caminero, Rays
Look out, baseball world. He has cut his chase rate for a third straight season. With his sick bat speed, Caminero is one of the best fastball hitters in the game. He slugs .788 against four-seamers.
OF: Byron Buxton, Twins
He goes to back-to-back All-Star games for the first time. He is the AL leader among outfielders in OPS, just ahead of ...
OF: Mike Trout, Angels
Welcome back, Mike. He hasn’t played in an All-Star Game since 2019 but should be on the field in Philadelphia next week with his imminent return to the Angels’ lineup this week. He joins Cal Ripken Jr. and George Brett as the only AL players elected as a starter at least 11 times.
OF: Riley Greene, Tigers, over Aaron Judge, Yankees
You could pick Greene or Cody Bellinger to replace the injured Judge. Bellinger is the better defender, but Greene has more total bases and the better OPS+.
DH: Yordan Alvarez, Astros
Easy call. The best hitter in baseball, Alvarez leads in the AL in hits, OBP, slug, OPS and total bases.
National League
C: Hunter Goodman, Rockies, over Drake Baldwin, Braves
Thirteen homers and a .680 slug in June pushed Goodman ahead of Baldwin in a tight race. And most of Goodman’s damage has come on the road, where he has hit 18 homers, and not in Colorado, where he has nine.
1B: Bryce Harper, Phillies, over Freddie Freeman, Dodgers
Harper leads all NL first basemen in OPS and is second in homers, runs and walks. Freeman and Matt Olson of the Braves are right there with him.
2B: Luis Arraez, Giants, over Ozzie Albies, Braves
Think of this position as a multiple-choice question with no bad answers. JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals leads in WAR, Brandon Lowe of the Pirates leads in homers and RBIs, Ketel Marte of the Diamondbacks leads in total bases and Brice Turang of the Brewers leads in runs. But there is no denying a guy hitting .326 with the most hits and highest OPS+ at the position.
SS: Otto Lopez, Marlins, over CJ Abrams, Nationals
Lopez retooled his approach over the winter to get more into his legs. It’s paying off with a huge season. He leads the league regardless of position in hits, singles and batting average and leads Abrams comfortably in WAR, 4.1 to 2.9.
3B: Max Muncy, Dodgers
At 35, Muncy is having the best season by a player that old at that position since Adrian Beltre 10 years ago.
OF: Juan Soto, Mets
It’s already the fifth All-Star game for Soto, who continues to be an on-base machine with more walks than strikeouts (for the eighth season) thanks to a career-low strikeout rate.
OF: James Wood, Nationals, over Brandon Marsh, Phillies
Wood leads the league in runs, walks and total bases while leading all NL outfielders in home runs.
OF: Pete Crow-Armstrong, Cubs, over Andy Pages, Dodgers
It’s close, but Crow-Armstrong leads the NL in WAR with better numbers than Pages in most categories. Soto, Wood and Crow-Armstrong rank 1-2-3 among NL outfielders in OPS.
DH: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers
He keeps amazing us. Ohtani has thrown 50 pitches at least 100 mph—already a career high, and third most among MLB starters—and hit 76 pitches at least 100 mph—27th most in MLB.
