Paul Skenes
Hey now, you’re an All-Star!
Pittsburgh Pirates rookie pitcher Paul Skenes has been named as the National League’s starting pitcher for Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Arlington, Texas. Skenes made his MLB debut on May 11 and is 6-0 with 1.90 ERA since then. On Thursday in Milwaukee, Skenes struck out 11 batters on his way to seven no-hit innings.
The 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick will be the fifth rookie pitcher to start an All-Star Game, with the most recent being Hideo Nomo in 1995.
National League All-Stars
As for the rest of your National All-Star team, the Philadelphia Phillies have seven all-stars, while the Los Angeles Dodgers have six, though Mookie Betts and Tyler Glasnow are both unavailable due to injury.
Starters:
C: William Contreras (MIL)
1B: Bryce Harper (PHI)
2B: Ketel Marte (AZ)
3B: Alec Bohm (PHI)
SS: Trea Turner (PHI)
OF: Christian Yelich (MIL)
OF: Jurickson Profar (SD)
OF: Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD)
DH: Shohei Ohtani (LAD).
The NL team’s manager is Tony Lovullo.
American League All-Stars
Meanwhile, the American League will be looking for redemption, after losing 3-2 to the National League last year in Seattle. And the men to bring that redemption? See below.
Starters:
C: Adley Rutschman (BAL)
1B: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (TOR)
2B: Marcus Semien (TEX)
3B: José Ramírez (CLE)
SS: Gunnar Henderson (BAL)
OF: Aaron Judge (NYY)
OF: Juan Soto (NYY)
OF: Steven Kwan (CLE)
DH: Yordan Alvarez (HOU)
The AL team’s manager is Bruce Bochy.
Home Run Derby
Before the main event on Tuesday, MLB’s most prolific sluggers will participate in the Home Run Derby from Globe Life Field at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT. It will be broadcast on ESPN. On a personal note, I went a couple years ago when the game was in LA, and it was really fun!
But, enough about me. Your Derby participants are: Pete Alonso (Mets), Alec Bohm (Phillies), Adolis Garcia (Rangers), Gunnar Henderson (Orioles), my personal fave, Teoscar Hernandez (Dodgers), Marcell Ozuna (Braves), Jose Ramirez (Guardians) and Bobby Witt Jr. (Royals).
May the odds be ever in your favor, gentlemen!
All-Star FYIs
- The game will take place on Tuesday, July 16 from Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on FOX.
- Should the National League win, it will be their first back-to-back victories since winning three in a row from 2010-2012.
- Despite losing last year, the American League holds the most wins with a 47-44-2 record.
- Globe Life Field was the site of the 2020 World Series, which saw the Los Angeles Dodgers win it all and the 2023 World Series, in which Corey Seager and the Rangers won it all.