The Baseball Report: All-Star Rosters Announced
By Ryan Mayer
The Midsummer Classic is set for next Tuesday, July 17th in Washington D.C. at the home park of the Washington Nationals. With just over a week before the teams take the field, Major League Baseball announced the results of the voting for both league's All-Star teams, as well as the starting line-ups for each. There's still a chance for players to make the teams, as fans can participate in the "Final Vote" on MLB.com all week, with five players given as options for each league.
Outside of that final roster spot, there will likely be changes, with players being replaced due to injuries, but for now, here's what each team looks like. The starters are as follows:
American League: C Wilson Ramos, 1B Jose Abreu, 2B Jose Altuve, 3B Jose Ramirez, SS Manny Machado, OF Mookie Betts, OF Mike Trout, OF Aaron Judge, DH J.D. Martinez
National League: C Willson Contreras, 1B Freddie Freeman, 2B Javier Baez, 3B Nolan Arenado, SS Brandon Crawford, OF Nick Markakis, OF Matt Kemp, OF Bryce Harper
The newest name to the All-Star experience is outfielder Nick Markakis. Markakis has been in the league for 13 seasons now (nine with Baltimore, four in Atlanta) but had never been selected to an All-Star team. This season, with the Braves, it would be hard to argue for his exclusion considering he's hitting .322/.389/.490 with 10 homers and 59 RBI in 89 games.
The most notable snubs? Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Blake Snell and Seattle Mariners ace James Paxton. Snell has posted a 12-4 record with a 2.09 ERA across 19 starts in the first half for the Rays, while Paxton is 8-3 with a 3.49 ERA in 19 starts of his own.
While the All-Star roster reveal has gotten most of the spotlight in the past day, rumblings out of Baltimore about a potential Manny Machado trade have been building since late last week. According to multiple reports, seven teams have made offers to the Orioles for the 26-year-old shortstop. The consensus in terms of the appeal of those trade offers seems to be: Dodgers, Brewers, Diamondbacks, Phillies, Braves, Indians and Cubs. The Dodgers and Brewers are the perceived front-runners in the race to secure Machado's services for the second half of the season.
Machado has been a third baseman for much of his career before moving to shortstop with the O's this season. Entering play on Monday, he's hitting .313/.382/.560 with 21 homers and 60 RBI in 88 games. His contract is up at season's end, meaning any team that acquires him will only have half a season to try and convince him to stay, otherwise he will hit the free-agent market this winter. For more of the biggest stories from this week in baseball, check out the video above.