The Houston Astros lead the American League West Division and will send three players to the All-Star Game on July 15 in Atlanta.
Major League Baseball announced the reserves and pitching staffs for each league on Sunday.
The three players that will represent the Astros in the game include shortstop Jeremy Peña, starting pitcher Hunter Brown and closer Josh Hader.
Peña is on the injured list but has been Houston’s best hitter this season. He has a slash of .322/.378/.489 with 11 home runs and 40 RBI. The 2022 World Series MVP was selected to his first All-Star Game.
Brown was also selected to the game for the first time. The right-hander has been a revelation this season in the Astros’ rotation. In his first 17 starts he was 9-3 with a Major League-leading 1.82 ERA. He had 126 strikeouts and 29 walks in those starts. He also had a 4.2 bWAR, best in the American League among pitchers.
Hader, in his second year with the Astros, was selected for the sixth time. His other selections were in the National League with Milwaukee (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) and with San Diego (2023).
He is having a resurgent season, as he is 5-1 with a 1.86 ERA in 34 games, the last of which is an MLB high. He has an MLB high 24 saves, with 59 strikeouts and seven walks in 39.2 innings (update).
Framber Valdez was not selected. A two-time All-Star, he is 10-4 with a 2.90 ERA in 18 starts with two complete games. He has 115 strikeouts and 41 walks in 115 innings (updated after Saturday’s game).
They will join the American League All-Star Game starters, which were revealed earlier this week. The starting lineup includes Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh, Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Detroit second baseman Gleyber Torres, Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson, Cleveland third baseman José Ramírez and Baltimore designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn.
The starting outfielders are Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, Riley Greene of the Detroit Tigers and Javier Báez of the Detroit Tigers.
