The Yankees got two first-timers, a long-timer, and a first in a long-timer on the AL All-Star Team.
Aaron Judge is the middle one, once again voted in as a starter for the AL All-Star team – his eighth selection overall and sixth in a row, all of them fan votes – while Cody Bellinger is the latter, selected by the players and making his first All-Star appearance since 2019.
The first-timers? Cam Schlittler, who was selected by the players, and Ben Rice, who was a selection from MLB and made the cut likely in part due to Vlad Guerrero’s injury.
Judge will not play due to his rib injury, perhaps meaning that Bellinger – who was fourth in the voting in Phase 2 among AL outfielders – could replace him. The utility outfielder is slashing .251/.349/.429 with 11 homers, 50 RBI, and 10 steals this season.
Rice, who was the runner-up to Guerrero in the Phase 2 voting, was not the players’ selection as a second first baseman – that went to Nick Kurtz of the Athletics, who will start in Vlad’s place – but Rice makes it in the midst of a season where he leads the Yankees in homers (24) and RBI (56) in a season where the team has been without several starters, including Judge, for long stretches.
“I’m excited about it. I can’t wait to enjoy the weekend,” Rice told MLB.com. “I didn’t necessarily come into the season saying, ‘I really want to be on the All-Star team.’ If you do your best every day and stick to your process and the results follow, maybe you get the chance.”
Schlittler, who made his MLB debut less than a calendar year ago, leads the AL in ERA with a 2.08 mark (and ERA+ at 203), and has 123 strikeouts in 104 innings over 18 starts.
He is a candidate to start the game, as he is also third in the AL in WHIP, second in K/9, second overall in strikeouts, and leads the AL in K/BB ratio – and July 14 would line up with his between-starts throw day. However, he understands if someone else gets the nod.
“If it lines up, it lines up. If it doesn’t, that’s fine as well,” Schlitter told MLB.com.
