Yankees predicted to have four starters on American League All-Star roster | Sporting News (original) (raw)

The 2026 New York Yankees are one of the top teams in the league, even though the Tampa Bay Rays are currently in lockstep with the team at the moment for the top spot in the AL East.

But Aaron Judge has landed on the injured list, and he's now likely not to earn an All-Star starting job. However, that doesn't mean the Yankees won't have some strong representation at the All-Star Game this year.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic is predicting that even with Judge on the sidelines, the Yankees will have four starters on the American League All-Star roster.

Yankees predicted to have four All-Star starters

"First base (3). Ben Rice, New York Yankees, (starter)," Bowden predicts. "... Second base (1). Jazz Chisholm Jr., New York Yankees (starter). ... Right field (1*)... Cody Bellinger, New York Yankees (starter). ... Pitchers (12). Cam Schlittler, RHP, New York Yankees (starter)," Bowden predicts.

This prediction from Bowden would have four Yankees players start in the All-Star Game this season, not even counting Judge.

All four are deserving. Starting with Schlittler, he's been arguably the best pitcher in the American League, posting a 1.87 ERA this season with 89 strikeouts and a 7-3 record across 14 starts this season.

Rice has a .299 batting average, 18 home runs, 45 RBIs, and a 1.032 OPS, which is second in MLB only to Houston Astros' Yordan Alvarez.

Bellinger has an .849 OPS this season with nine homers, 41 RBIs, and 3.6 bWAR, second only to Bobby Witt Jr. among all players in the AL. He's very much deserving of a spot on the All-Star starting roster.

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Lastly, Chisholm is predicted to earn a starting job this year. He is hitting .234 this season with eight homers, 25 RBIs, and a .702 OPS. Does someone with those numbers really deserve a starting spot on the AL All-Star team?

Bowden gave Chisholm the nod, "despite his slow start to the season due to his power-and-speed combination." Second base is the weakest position, and Chisholm is fitting the weakest prediction from Bowden.

Ernie Clement of the Toronto Blue Jays (.786 OPS) or Texas Rangers' Ezequiel Duran (.804 OPS) are two options who likely should've earned this nod over Chisholm.

Overall, Bowden is predicting Schlittler, Bellinger, Rice, and Chisholm will be AL All-Star starters for this year's All-Star Game in Philadelphia. Only Chisholm is really up for debate, as the other three should be locks for starting jobs at the moment.

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