Major League Baseball on Saturday announced the selections of 10 players to the active All-Star rosters as replacements for All-Stars unable to participate in Tuesday’s 91st Midsummer Classic.
The 10 players headed to Denver are Tim Anderson of the Chicago White Sox; starting pitcher Chris Bassitt of the Oakland A’s; second baseman Whit Merrifield of the Kansas City Royals; shortstop Joey Wendle of the Tampa Bay Rays; starting pitcher Walker Buehler and third baseman Justin Turner of the Los Angeles Dodgers; catcher Yadier Molina of the St. Louis Cardinals; starting pitcher Freddy Peralta of the Milwaukee Brewers; starting pitcher Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals; and starting pitcher Taijuan Walker of the New York Mets.
Anderson, Bassitt, Wendle, Peralta and Walker are all first-time All-Stars, bringing the number of first-time selections this year to 39, tied for the most in All-Star Game history.
Molina will be this game’s most experienced player, as he is making his 10th trip to the Midsummer Classic. Scherzer has now been chosen eight times, including six with the Washington Nationals. That matches Bryce Harper’s total for the most All-Star selections in team history.
Buehler and Turner give the Dodgers five 2021 All-Stars, matching the Red Sox for the most from any team. However, Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts will not play due to injury. Each of the Astros’ four All-Stars — second baseman Jose Altuve, shortstop Carlos Correa, outfielder Michael Brantley and relief pitcher Ryan Pressly — will be inactive as well. The same goes for Giants catcher Buster Posey, who’s out with a left thumb contusion.
The four other All-Stars who won’t participate Tuesday are starting pitchers: Jacob deGrom of the Mets; Yu Darvish of the San Diego Padres; Brandon Woodruff of the Brewers; and Kevin Gausman of the Giants. Woodruff and Gausman are out because they are scheduled to start Sunday for their respective teams.
