Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Alek Manoah and centre-fielder George Springer were added Sunday to the American League lineup for the July 19 All-Star Game.
Manoah, 24, leads Blue Jays starters with nine wins and a 2.34 earned run average, both stats rank third among American League pitchers.
The second-year pitcher also ranks third in the AL with 107.2 innings pitched.
It will be his first trip to the All-Star game.
The 32-year-old Springer will be making his fourth all-star appearance. His 16 home runs are second most on Toronto, trailing fellow all-star Vlad Guerrero Jr.’s 19 homers.
Guerrero and catcher Alejandro Kirk were named All-Star starters on Friday after being selected to the American League team after finishing atop their positions in the second round of fan voting.
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Springer finished fourth in voting for American League outfielders.
A year after Shohei Ohtani became baseball’s first two-way All-Star, the Los Angeles Angels sensation did it again.
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Ohtani was picked for the American League pitching staff on Sunday as a Major League Baseball selection, two days after he was elected by fans to start at designated hitter.
Pitchers Clay Holmes, Gerrit Cole and Nestor Cortes made the AL team from the Yankees along with catcher Jose Trevino, giving New York six All-Stars for the first time since 2011. Outfielders Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton were elected to start.
Defending AL champion Houston has five All-Stars, with pitchers Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez, outfielder Kyle Tucker and designated hitter Yordan Álvarez selected along with starting second baseman Jose Altuve. Álvarez went on the injured list Sunday because of right hand inflammation.
The Blue Jays, New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals all boast four All-Stars.
Seattle outfielder Julio Rodríguez was the lone rookie picked and at 21 is the youngest of this year’s All-Stars. There are 30 first-time All-Stars and Rodríguez, who debuted on April 8, is among 10 age 24 or younger.
Ohtani, the reigning AL MVP, is hitting .260 with 19 homers and 59 RBIs and is 8-4 with a 2.44 ERA, 111 strikeouts and 20 walks in 81 innings. He has won five consecutive starts and is coming off a Wednesday outing at Miami when he became the first player in major league history to strike out 10 batters, drive in two runs and steal a base.
Detroit first baseman Miguel Cabrera is the senior All-Star with 12 selections and St. Louis DH Albert Pujols is second with 11, both picks of baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred under a provision for career achievements in the new collective bargaining agreement.
The 92nd Major League Baseball All-Star Game will played at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 20, 2022.
With files from the Associated Press
© 2022 The Canadian Press
