2019 MLB All-Star Rosters: Ranking the Biggest Snubs and Surprises
At long last, the full rosters for the 2019 Major League Baseball All-Star Game have been revealed. Let's not waste any time getting all hot and bothered about it.
To wit, we've compiled our thoughts on the biggest surprises and snubs for the squads that the American League and National League have lined up for July 9 at Progressive Field.
The surprises cover the most unexpected entries on either roster, including in the starting lineups that were previously announced on Thursday. The snubs are the most glaring omissions from each roster, period.
Let's rank 'em, starting with the biggest surprises.
Note: Stats are current through Saturday, June 29.
Surprise No. 4: Hunter Pence Wins AL Designated Hitter Voting
As of June 17, Hunter Pence was trailing J.D. Martinez in the primary voting for the American League's starting designated hitter slot by nearly 300,000 votes.
But when the winners of the "Starters Election" round were announced 10 days later, there was Pence on top of Martinez by over 200,000 votes.
If the question is which player has been more All-Star-like in recent seasons, there's zero doubt that Martinez should have won. He's been one of the best hitters in baseball since 2014. For his part, Pence could barely stay on the field between 2015 and 2018.
Yet this season is indeed a different story. Whereas both Martinez and the Boston Red Sox are struggling to duplicate a magical 2018 season, Pence has been reborn with a .962 OPS and 15 home runs for an upstart Texas Rangers squad.
To this extent, Pence's surprise victory was certainly well deserved.
Surprise No. 3: Ketel Marte Wins NL Second Baseman Voting
If the aforementioned voting update was to be believed, the race for the National League's starting second base gig was a two-horse affair between Ozzie Albies and Mike Moustakas.
That is, of course, until Ketel Marte came from behind to win the honor in a relative landslide.
Marte didn't come into the 2019 season with the same kind of name recognition as Albies, who was an All-Star in 2018, or Moustakas, who nabbed his third All-Star nod on Sunday.
Like Hunter Pence, however, Marte truly earned his upset victory. After hinting at a breakout here and there for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2017 and 2018, he's now finally realizing one with a .939 OPS and 20 homers.
“I was almost crying out there,” Marte said of getting the news, per Nick Piecoro of AZRepublic.com. “It’s a happy moment for me, my family, my career. I want to thank everybody in the organization who helped me to be that player that I am right now.”
Surprise No. 2: Jose Abreu Makes the AL Reserves
By all accounts, Jose Abreu has the respect of everyone in the Chicago White Sox's clubhouse, and plenty more throughout the American League at large.
That doesn't mean he belongs on this year's All-Star squad.
Abreu was a questionable selection for the 2018 team, as he went into the break with a .752 OPS en route to a career-low .798 OPS and 22 home runs. He's rebounded this season by hitting 19 homers, but his OPS has only recovered to .809.
Per Baseball Reference wins above replacement, Edwin Encarnacion or Luke Voit would have been a better choice than Abreu strictly among fellow AL first basemen. That's not counting players from other positions, including one in particular that we'll get to.
Plus, it's not as if Abreu is needed as the White Sox's obligatory representative. Lucas Giolito could have handled that all on his own.
Surprise No. 1: David Dahl Makes the NL All-Star Reserves
Out of the many talented outfielders who could have landed on the NL's bench behind Cody Bellinger, Christian Yelich and Ronald Acuna Jr., David Dahl was evidently a can't-miss choice.
He's not even among the league's top 15 outfielders, according to Baseball Reference WAR.
To be fair, Dahl went into the Colorado Rockies' tilt with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday with a rock-solid .912 OPS and 37 extra-base hits, and he added another with a three-run homer.
Yet once Coors Field is adjusted for, Dahl's OPS translates to a good-not-great 117 OPS+. And it's doubly fair to adjust for Coors Field in his case, as there's a 297-point gap between his home OPS and road OPS.
In light of the many injuries he's overcome to get to this point, Dahl's selection is certainly a feel-good story. But that's no comfort to the handful of guys who arguably deserve his spot more.
Snub No. 4: Felipe Vazquez from the NL Pitching Staff
Felipe Vazquez might not still be pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates on the other side of the July 31 trade deadline.
In the meantime, however, he absolutely deserves to pitch for the National League All-Stars for a second season in a row.
As excellent as Vazquez was in 2017 and 2018, he's somehow even better in 2019. The flamethrowing left-hander has appeared in 32 games and put up a 1.80 ERA, with a whopping 55 strikeouts in only 35 innings. Both Baseball Reference WAR and FanGraphs WAR rank him as one of the NL's top five relievers.
The tricky part is who could hypothetically be bumped from the NL's pitching staff to accommodate Vazquez. But to this end, it's debatable whether Will Smith (San Francisco Giants) or Sandy Alcantara (Miami Marlins) are truly the best representatives for their respective woebegotten clubs.
Snub No. 3: Liam Hendriks from the AL Pitching Staff
Speaking of deserving relief pitchers, there may be no more overlooked success story in 2019 than that of Liam Hendriks.
The Australia native was just sort of there through his first eight major league seasons. Now he's extremely here in 2019. He's logged 45.2 innings across 38 outings, and posted a 1.38 ERA and 56 strikeouts.
According to Baseball Reference WAR, Hendriks is the AL's top reliever. Per FanGraphs WAR, same thing.
Granted, it's difficult to look at the AL's loaded pitching staff and pick out pitchers who could theoretically be replaced by Hendriks. But there's a scenario in which the Oakland Athletics right-hander gets in over John Means, who would cede his role as the Baltimore Orioles' representative to breakout slugger Trey Mancini.
Snub No. 2: Max Muncy from the NL Reserves
Although he's more of a utility infielder, Max Muncy was listed as a first baseman for the All-Star balloting. He missed out on the Starters Election behind Freddie Freeman, Josh Bell and Anthony Rizzo.
Maybe that wasn't right, but at least it's more forgivable than Muncy being left off the roster entirely.
Muncy should have been an All-Star in 2018, in which he broke out with a .973 OPS and 35 homers. It was easy to predict he would regress in 2019, yet he's carrying on with a .933 OPS and 20 homers. Per Baseball Reference, Ketel Marte is the only NL infielder with a higher WAR.
"He's an All-Star. Any way you slice it," Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, according to Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times.
He should be, anyway. Specifically, over David Dahl.
Snub No. 1: Xander Bogaerts from the AL Reserves
Like Max Muncy, Xander Bogaerts didn't even qualify for the Starters Election at his position in the American League voting.
Also like Muncy, the Boston Red Sox star has every right to bristle at being left off the AL roster altogether.
Bogaerts got lost behind Manny Machado, Francisco Lindor and Jean Segura on his way to a career-best .883 OPS and 23 homers in 2018. With Machado and Segura now in the National League and Lindor injured through April 20, you'd think Bogaerts' .925 OPS and 15 homers would allow him to stand out now.
Not so much, as it turns out. Jorge Polanco ran away with the voting for the AL's starting shortstop job, and Lindor was chosen to back him up.
Per Baseball Reference WAR, Bogaerts at least deserved to get in over Lindor. Then there's FanGraphs WAR, which says that Mike Trout is the only AL player with a stronger All-Star resume this season.
Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.