The MLB season is already two months old, and the All-Star Game is only one month away. The fan vote for the National and American League opened in the past week. So what better time than now for All-Star Game predictions?
All-Star Game Predictions
American League
Catcher: Adley Rutschman, Baltimore Orioles
It’s only been a little more than a year since Adley Rutschman made his long-awaited debut for the Baltimore Orioles. The former #1 overall pick has quickly asserted himself as one of the game’s finest catchers. Rutschman currently has a slash line of .284/.402/.431 with 8 home runs and 28 RBI. Advanced metrics paint an even better picture of just how special a player he is. He currently holds a 134 wRC+ and 1.6 fWAR.
Honorable Mention: Jonah Heim, (TEX)
1B: Yandy Díaz, Tampa Bay Rays
Yandy Díaz has been an overlooked player for a few years now. However, he has caught the eyes of sabermetric analysts for some time. He has always been able to hit the ball hard. He had, however, struggled to elevate the ball to hit for more power. In 2023, Díaz made some major swing adjustments and has become one of the best overall hitters in baseball. Thus far he has hit 12 home runs and owns a .977 OPS.
Honorable Mention: Anthony Rizzo, (NYY)
2B: Marcus Semien, Texas Rangers
One could make the argument that no other player has created such a wide gap between themselves and their peers in regard to All-Star voting. Marcus Semien has easily been the best all-around second baseman in the American League this season. He holds a .304 average with 9 home runs. Semien is also in a tie with Wander Franco for the American League lead in Wins Above Replacement with 3.2.
Honorable Mention: Whit Merrifield, (TOR)
3B: Matt Chapman, Toronto Blue Jays
In a contract year, Matt Chapman is in the middle of the best season he’s had since 2018. He already has 2.3 fWAR on the year due to his impressive .849 OPS and his generational defensive ability at the hot corner. His defense may have declined to some extent with age. However, he has still been effective at his position with 6 defensive runs saved and 2 outs above average.
Honorable Mention: Josh Jung, (TEX)
SS: Wander Franco, Tampa Bay Rays
Wander Franco was baseball’s top prospect for two years straight. He has finally been able to showcase his ability through a full season in 2023 now that he’s healthy. As mentioned earlier, Franco is tied with Marcus Semien for the AL lead in fWAR with 3.2. He is also batting .309 with a .500 slugging percentage, but his video game-like numbers don’t end there. He has an absurdly low 12.8 strikeout rate and 21 stolen bases. Pair these incredible offensive numbers with his sensational defense and this could be the first of several more All-Star appearances for the young Tampa Bay Rays shortstop.
Honorable Mention: Bo Bichette, (TOR)
Who do you want to see as the starting SS for the American League at the All-Star Game? ⭐#MLBNOffBase | @LGRed | @Plakata | @ArielEpstein | @Xavier_Scruggs pic.twitter.com/XSXfoJMSIk
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) June 7, 2023
OF: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
The New York Yankees’ captain has a chance to be the American League’s leading vote-getter. He has shown no sign of decline after signing a 9-year, $360 million contract to stay in the Bronx. He currently has the same number of home runs that he had at this point last year with 19. Hopefully, he returns from the Injured List sooner rather than later so he can once again play in the All-Star Game and continue his legacy of being one of the greatest Yankee hitters ever.
OF: Yordan Alvarez, Houston Astros
Yordan Alvarez is a pure hitter, plain and simple. He hits left and right-handed pitching very well, has an excellent grasp of the strike zone with 32 walks on the year, and he has incredible power. His 16 home runs are among the top of the American League. Additionally, his 55 RBI lead all of baseball. He has asserted himself as one of the game’s best hitters over the course of his career, and he has made himself a sure bet for another trip to the All-Star Game this season.
OF: Josh Lowe, Tampa Bay Rays
Lowe is the biggest surprise pick for the American League, but he is producing at an elite rate for the top team in the Majors. Lowe currently has 11 home runs and a 149 OPS+ and has also swiped 14 bases. It’s only a half-season sample size, but Lowe appears to be yet another young star in the making for the Rays.
Honorable Mentions: Kevin Kiermaier (TOR) Cedric Mullins (BAL), Adolis Garcia (TEX)
DH: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
If fans were able to vote for starting pitchers, Shohei Ohtani would be near the top of the list as well. On the offensive side alone, Ohtani is batting .276 with 16 home runs and a .904 OPS. He is still great on the basepaths with 7 stolen bases on the year as well. For the third straight season, Ohtani is making his case to be the best player in baseball both on the mound and at the plate.
Honorable Mention: Brent Rooker, (OAK)
SP: Kevin Gausman, Toronto Blue Jays
Gausman is having yet another sensational season, striking out 113 over 82 innings with a 2.63 ERA. Just like last year, however, his underlying numbers are even better than his base numbers. He currently has a FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) of 2.30, which ranks at the top of the American League. The Toronto Blue Jays’ ace certainly looks to reach his second All-Star Game in the past three years.
Honorable Mentions: Shane McClanahan (TB), Sonny Gray (MIN), Nathan Eovaldi (TEX)
RP: Félix Bautista, Baltimore Orioles
Félix Bautista has asserted himself as one of baseball’s best closers while saving 15 games with a 1.24 ERA and an absurd 18.62 strikeouts per 9 innings. The 26-year-old seems to be a sure bet to represent the Orioles at the Midsummer Classic for the first time this year.
Honorable Mention: Yennier Cano, (BAL)
National League
C: Sean Murphy, Atlanta Braves
Were it not for his teammate Ronald Acuña Jr., Murphy would currently be making a strong case for National League MVP. Two months into the 2023 season, he currently has an astounding .933 OPS and 2.8 fWAR which rank first in the Major Leagues among catchers. Additionally, Murphy is one of the top defensive catchers in baseball, ranking in the top ten percent among all catchers in both pop time and framing according to Baseball Savant.
Honorable Mention: Will Smith, (LAD)
1B: Freddie Freeman, Los Angeles Dodgers
Freddie Freeman is one of the most consistent hitters the game has seen in a long time. In his age 33 season, he is putting up the fabled “3-4-5” slash line, batting .329 with a .402 on-base percentage and a .565 slugging percentage. He may be on his way to his second MVP award if he continues to produce at this level.
Honorable Mention: Matt Olson, (ATL)
2B: Luis Arraez, Miami Marlins
Arraez is not only on his way to his second straight All-Star Game; he is on his way to making history. He currently has a .403 batting average. Arraez would be the first player to finish a season batting over .400 since the great Ted Williams did it in 1941.
Honorable Mention: Nolan Gorman, (STL)
3B: J.D. Davis, San Francisco Giants
This is another surprising name to be contending for a spot in the All-Star Game, as third base has been one of the deepest positions in the National League for several years. Davis is currently in a perfect storm, as he is having one of his best seasons while many of the other big names at third base are underperforming, like Manny Machado and Nolan Arenado. Davis is having a very respectable year, posting a 134 wRC+ and 1.6 fWAR, part of which is boosted by his stellar defense.
Honorable Mention: Max Muncy, (LAD)
SS: Dansby Swanson, Chicago Cubs
After making his first All-Star appearance in 2022, Swanson is experiencing the same good fortune as Davis in the fact that his peers at the position are not playing to their usual standards. This is not a slight against Swanson, however, who has posted a slash line very similar to that of his All-Star campaign last year. He is currently slashing .270/.361/.422 which is good for a wRC+ of 118. His defense has once again been stellar, as he leads all shortstops in Outs Above Average and is second among shortstops in Defensive Runs Saved.
Honorable Mention: Geraldo Perdomo, (ARI)
OF: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
Carroll entered the 2023 season as the #2 prospect in baseball and already looks like a superstar. He currently has an OPS of just under .900 and is elite in the outfield and on the basepaths. The NL-leading Arizona Diamondbacks have a budding superstar on their hands and he’ll be there for a long time.
OF: Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves
Acuña cannot be stopped. He has asserted his will upon the rest of baseball all season with a .962 OPS and a league-leading 26 stolen bases, which puts him on pace for over 60. There are not enough words to describe how incredible Acuna has been, and he has set himself at the front of the NL MVP race by a wide margin.
OF: Juan Soto, San Diego Padres
After a rough start in San Diego both after the trade deadline last year and the first month of the 2023 season, Juan Soto has reminded the baseball world that he is still Juan Soto. He currently sports an OBP above .400 and a wRC+ of 145 and is one of the few bright spots on the underperforming Padres.
Honorable Mentions: Mookie Betts (LAD), Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. (ARI), Brandon Nimmo (NYM)
SP: Zac Gallen, Arizona Diamondbacks
Gallen cemented himself as an elite starting pitcher in 2022, presently building off that campaign by being even better this season. He currently has a 2.75 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 78.2 innings. His 2.23 FIP shows that he’s actually performed better than his ERA suggests, too.
Honorable Mentions: Spencer Strider (ATL), Marcus Stroman (CHC)
RP: Devin Williams, Milwaukee Brewers
Williams made his debut three years ago, and hitters still haven’t figured out how to hit his changeup. He currently has an ERA of 0.44. Williams is markedly on pace to have one of the greatest single seasons for a relief pitcher of all time.
Honorable Mention: Alexis Díaz, (CIN)
Main photo credits:
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Players mentioned:
Adley Rutschman, Jonah Heim, Yandy Diaz, Anthony Rizzo, Marcus Semien, Wander Franco, Whit Merrifield, Matt Chapman, Josh Jung, Bo Bichette, Aaron Judge, Yordan Alvarez, Josh Lowe, Kevin Kiermaier, Cedric Mullins, Adolis Garcia, Shohei Ohtani, Brent Rooker, Kevin Gausman, Shane McClanahan, Sonny Gray, Nathan Eovaldi, Felix Bautista, Yennier Cano, Sean Murphy, Will Smith, Freddie Freeman, Matt Olson, Luis Arraez, Nolan Gorman, J.D. Davis, Manny Machado, Nolan Arenado, Max Muncy, Dansby Swanson, Geraldo Perdomo, Corbin Carroll, Ronald Acuna Jr., Juan Soto, Mookie Betts, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Brandon Nimmo, Zac Gallen, Spencer Strider, Marcus Stroman, Devin Williams, Alexis Diaz
