2023 All-Star Game: How Many Phillies Will be Sent to Seattle?
We are less than three weeks away from the annual Midsummer Classic, and hopefully, we will see a few players sporting red pinstripes, representing the Phillies in Seattle. The starting nine have already been decided via fan vote—no Phillies players will be in the starting lineup. However, the pitchers will be decided by managers and the reserves will be selected by both players and managers.
That said, how many Phillies will be sent to Seattle? And more importantly, who?
The “Locks”
Nick Castellanos
In terms of players who are true “locks,” meaning they have the reputation and stat line to go to Seattle, Nick Castellanos is probably the only guarantee on the Phillies. In his sophomore season with the Phillies, Castellanos has a .311 average and an OPS of .851. Among NL outfielders, Castellanos is first in doubles, second in batting average and hits, third in RBI, and seventh in OPS.
While it has not been perfect, his defense is much improved from 2022. He has not yet made an error in the field, and he has six outfield assists and has been involved in two double plays.
Bryce Harper
I have to put Harper as a lock because, well, he’s Bryce Harper.
Despite his recent power outage, Harper has still been productive in the Phillies’ lineup. Since returning at the beginning of May, Harper has a .281 average, a .772 OPS, and 20 RBI. He finished second in the fan voting for starting DH in the national league, ending up just three percentage points behind starter J.D. Martinez. Plus, his two MVP awards and superstar status in MLB should punch his ticket to Seattle.
Deserving
Ranger Suarez
Ranger was a tricky one to categorize.
In my mind, there’s no doubt that he deserves a trip to the all-star game. Suarez has a 3.18 ERA in 2023, but the issue is that he has started just nine games all season due to an injury he sustained during Spring Training. Nonetheless, Ranger Suarez seems to be the frontrunner for National League Pitcher of the Month, as he allowed just four runs in 33.1 innings in June, which is good for a 1.08 ERA.
It may be hard to justify not rostering the pitcher of the month, so the managers should be able to overlook his smaller workload.
Jose Alvarado
With a fastball that has topped out at 101 miles per hour paired with a virtually unhittable cutter, Jose Alvarado has been a lethal weapon out of the Phillies’ bullpen. In 23.1 innings, Alvarado has a 1.54 ERA, a 1.11 WHIP, and 37 punch-outs. Earlier this season, he became the first reliever to strike out eleven straight batters since 1961.
Since coming back from injury, Alvarado has gotten into some jams, but he has found ways to get around them. In his last seven innings pitched, he has allowed twelve base runners, yet he has allowed just two earned runs over that same span.
The Long Shots
Bryson Stott
Similarly to Suarez, I really believe that Stott has been playing at an all-star caliber level in 2023. Unfortunately, his competition is hitting at a level that has not been witnessed since Hall-of-Famer Ted Williams in 1941.
Stott’s .291 average is second-best among qualifying national league second basemen, but he ranks ninth of 13 in OPS and doubles. With sheer power becoming more and more focused on, other candidates like Ketel Marte, Nolan Gorman, and Ozzie Albies are more likely to get the nod.
Brandon Marsh
Quietly, Marsh has been one of the better all-around outfielders in baseball this season. In 229 at-bats, he’s hitting .284 and has an OPS of .837. He and Max Muncy were hovering atop the league leaderboard in OPS for the first month-and-a-half of 2023, but Marsh’s struggles in May brought his stat line back down to Earth. Thanks to a strong end of June, Marsh has the eighth-best OPS among outfielders in the National League.
Andrew Vasquez
If I had to guess, nobody expected to see Andrew Vasquez’s name in an article about all-stars. Well, we all thought wrong. As the heading says, it’s a long long shot, but Vasquez has put up impressive numbers with the Phillies in 2023. In 24 games, Vasquez has thrown 34 innings, posted an ERA of 1.85, and struck out 30 batters. He does not usually pitch in high-leverage spots, and he does not break the radar gun like many other relievers, but if we are looking solely at statistics, Andrew Vasquez has a chance of being an all-star, and you’re as surprised as I am.
Zack Wheeler
With a 3.76 ERA, it’s no argument that Zack Wheeler has not put up all-star caliber numbers. However, if you take a deeper dive into his statistics, Wheeler has been one of the unluckiest pitchers in baseball. He ranks in the top percentiles in xSLG, hard hit percentage, average exit velocity, and barrel percentage. Wheeler also has an xERA of just 3.31, which is 0.45 less than his season ERA.
Wheeler was snubbed from being an all-star last year, so maybe he’ll get some make-up votes?
J.T. Realmuto
Bryson Stott may miss the all-star game because of bad luck, but if J.T. Realmuto were to end up in Seattle, it would be because of the opposite—good luck. In 2023, Realmuto has a batting average of just .248 and an OPS of .764. Among National League catchers, Realmuto is first in doubles and triples, and he has the third-best OPS among those qualified. Of course, Realmuto has also been one of the top defensive catchers in the game.
Catchers have a tendency to decline invitations to the all-star game, so it is possible that Realmuto will be invited if the third spot falls down to him.
Kyle Schwarber
The only thing getting Kyle Schwarber to Seattle would be his 21 home runs and .326 OBP. But with a batting average of just .186, it is hard to argue on his behalf.
My Predictions
Starters: None
Pitchers: Ranger Suarez, Jose Alvarado
Reserves: Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos
Reserves and pitchers in both leagues will be announced on July 2.
