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When it comes to All-Star Game rosters, not every slight is forever.
A gaggle of players left out when Major League Baseball released its list of 64 players earning selection to the July 11 Midsummer Classic at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park will eventually be made whole, through injury replacement or to replace starting pitchers whose day jobs conflict with appearing in the game.
Still, the initial sting of exclusion can stick a while.
Fresh faces: Perennial All-Stars staying home as first-timers dominate selections
With that, USA TODAY Sports breaks down the eight players who may feel righteously indignant that the fans, players and league officials couldn’t find room for them on a jet to Seattle:
Follow the money: MLB player salaries and payrolls for every major league team
2B Ketel Marte, Diamondbacks
His .867 OPS is second only to Luis Arraez among National League second basemen and his 15 home runs rank third. Arizona has won 50 games and has a three-game lead in the NL West, but with fan-elected outfielder Corbin Carroll and starter Zac Gallen their lone All-Stars, is a bit underrepresented.
RP Carlos Estevez, Angels
Estevez is perfect in 21 save opportunities, setting a club record, and has a 1.85 ERA.
3B Rafael Devers, Red Sox
Ranks in the top three in the AL in homers (20), RBI (66) and extra-base hits (38). From a purely vibes perspective, Devers is the kind of guy whose rep should practically ensure he make the All-Star Game, if his numbers are appropriately stellar. They are.
SS Wander Franco, Rays
Corey Seager has had a fantastic season but missed a month with a hamstring injury and has played in just 52 games, compared to 80 for Franco and 84 for fellow shortstop Bo Bichette. So, fans painted the shortstop position into a corner by voting Seager as the starter. Franco gets the short end of the stick despite 4.2 Wins Above Replacement, an .810 OPS and 26 stolen bases. A two-game disciplinary benching from the Rays likely didn’t help in the player vote.
RH David Bednar, Pirates
Has struck out 37 and walked just four with a 0.89 WHIP in 31 1/3 innings. Bednar’s overall body of work is as good as any NL reliever, and while the Pirates have struggled, Bednar would be a fine bookend as a second Buc alongside starter Mitch Keller.
INF/OF Spencer Steer, Reds
They came out of nowhere to storm to the top of the NL Central, and likely caught fans and players off guard at the ballot box with a late-half 12-game winning streak. And rumblings have generated that the league should add super-toolsy and mega-fun rookie Elly De La Cruz to the roster, since the game is about, well, entertainment. On merit, however, De La Cruz might have to take a number behind fellow rookie Matt McLain, who debuted May 15, has a .924 OPS and already ranks fourth in WAR among NL shortstops (1.9).
And both might have less of a case than Steer, who is ninth in the NL among qualified batters with an .876 OPS, has 13 homers and 35 extra-base hits. Heck, if the game was a month later, maybe they’d all make it.
OF Masataka Yoshida, Red Sox
Feels a little silly to list multiple Red Sox since they sit fifth in the AL East, but Yoshida has done nothing but get on base since the moment he arrived at Fenway Park from Japan. His .377 OBP ranks fifth in the AL, pairing it with a .305 average and a respectable 17 doubles.
SP Joe Ryan, Twins
What’s not to like about 105 strikeouts in 96 2/3 innings paired with a 0.97 WHIP? Ryan has been a quality start machine, notching 11 in 16 outings and tossing the lone shutout in the AL this season.
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