Zack Wheeler, Kyle Schwarber earn All-Star nods, 3 Phillies snubbed

The NL East’s first-place Phillies will have just two representatives in Atlanta for All-Star weekend.

The MLB announced Sunday evening that Zack Wheeler and Kyle Schwarber have been selected as All-Stars. The All-Star Game is July 15 at Truist Park.

The announcement comes shortly after Wheeler’s stellar performance against the Reds, in which he allowed just one base runner across nine innings.

Wheeler tossed his first complete game since 2021 on Sunday, allowing just one hit, a homer to Austin Hays, no walks while striking out 12 on 108 pitches. He became the first pitcher in Phillies history with 12+ strikeouts, 0 walks, and no more than one hit allowed in any outing. Wheeler is also the first Phillie to throw a nine-inning complete game and not allow more than one baserunner since Roy Halladay‘s perfect game in Miami in 2010.

He earned the NL Pitcher of the Month in June after allowing just two earned runs in 31.0 innings in the month. Wheeler has posted a 2.17 ERA over 18 starts, leading the NL with 148 strikeouts and a 0.81 WHIP. Now, he has been selected for his third All-Star game.

Now, Dave Roberts, who will serve as the NL’s manager, will have the tough job of picking the game’s starter. Paul Skenes is the other option. Skenes was last year’s starter. Wheeler has made a pretty good pitch for himself.

Schwarber returns to the All-Star game for the first time since 2022. This will be his third time making an appearance at the All-Star game.

Schwarber ranks fifth in home runs in the MLB with 27, behind just Cal Raleigh, Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, and Eugenio Suarez. Schwarber has also posted 64 walks, fourth-most in the league.

Schwarber slugged 19 home runs through the month of May, but hit just six in his normally red-hot June. In July, however, Schwarber has turned it on, swatting two homers in the past five games.

There are always guys who are snubbed from the team, but the Phillies had three that are particularly egregious.

Ranger Suarez and Cristopher Sanchez are two of them. The two lefties round out the Phillies’ big-three in their rotation and have been lights out. Neither is on the All-Star roster, as of now.

I can understand Suarez not getting the nod; he has only thrown 77 innings. However, over that time, he has a 1.99 ERA with 73 strikeouts and a 1.03 WHIP. If Ronald Acuna Jr. is starting after playing in just 40 games, Suarez more than deserves to be in Atlanta.

However, Sanchez was straight up robbed. In 100.2 innings, he has a 2.68 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP, and 108 strikeouts. The man continues to be wildly underrated.

Trea Turner not making it makes absolutely no sense, as well. He leads the NL in hits with 109, has a .299 average, a .802 OPS, and has stolen 22 bases.

The three shortstops on the NL roster are Francisco Lindor, Elly De La Cruz, and Mookie Betts. All three of them have a lower average than Turner, and only De La Cruz’s OPS is higher.

The three of them still have a chance to make the roster, as some players will not attend the festivities, whether it is for injury or personal reasons. Suarez, Sanchez, and Turner should be at the very top of the list.

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