Orioles’ All-Star – Phase 1 voting for the July 14 All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia is underway, and the Orioles have a rare-looking ballot spread—especially at catcher. The selections put Adley Rutschman in the mix for fans, Samuel Basallo at designated hitter
By the time the pencil is worn down, voting doesn’t feel abstract anymore.
Phase 1 of voting for the July 14 All-Star game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia began this week, a reminder of simpler times when I was a kid at Memorial Stadium punching out the squares next to every Orioles player.
Back then, Phase 1 was hoping that I didn’t break the point.
It turns out the Orioles have to do the same kind of careful work—only now it’s Major League Baseball’s ballot that gets built by teams. The Orioles submitted the following candidates:
Designated hitter: Samuel Basallo
Catcher: Adley Rutschman
First baseman: Pete Alonso
Second baseman: Jeremiah Jackson
Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson
Third baseman: Coby Mayo
Outfielders: Dylan Beavers, Leody Taveras, Taylor Ward
The names landed in a familiar way—then quickly didn’t.
Basallo as the designated hitter makes sense when you look at role consistency: he’s made 19 appearances in the designated hitter slot. But yesterday’s start behind the plate was his 26th game at catcher. nine fewer than Adley Rutschman. the two-time All-Star who is having a bounce back season. The ballot, in other words, is reflecting a player rotation that’s already real in the standings.
There’s also a quieter tension in the Beavers pick.
Beavers hasn’t played since May 10 due to a strained right oblique. The latest injury update doesn’t say anything about a pending rehab assignment. but he’s still on the ballot instead of Tyler O’Neill. O’Neill is batting .160 with a .500 OPS in 38 games and has a minus-0.6 bWAR to match last year’s calculation.
Jackson at second base—and Mayo at third base—were both surprising if you were watching spring storylines.
Mayo seemed more likely during spring training after news broke that Jordan Westburg had a partial tear in the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, which eventually led to reconstructive surgery. Mayo hit .378/.405/.622 with three doubles, two homers and 12 RBIs in 15 exhibition games.
Second base opened up with Jackson Holliday breaking his right hamate bone in February, but Jackson wasn’t assured of breaking camp with the team. He had to win the job, and he didn’t play the position with the Orioles last year.
Names had to be submitted by the last week in May. It makes you wonder whether Blaze Alexander became a consideration after his hot month. even if his starts are spread out among third base (13). second base (10). center field (six). shortstop (five). left field (three) and right field (one). That’s a utility footprint—exactly the kind of flexibility the Orioles valued when they traded for him.
Those submission decisions also collide with the second-half calendar.
Managers can be torn between wanting players honored with a selection and wanting them to get some rest before the second half postseason push. Craig Albernaz. the Orioles manager. told the media Wednesday about selections: “It’s extremely important. ” adding. “I’m very biased of our group because I’m fortunate enough to work with these guys every single day and see their work ethic. The more guys we can get would be awesome.”.
Last summer, Ryan O’Hearn was the lone representative at designated hitter. The Orioles had four and five players. respectively. during the back-to-back playoff seasons in 2023-24. and Corbin Burnes was the starting pitcher in ’24. The club settled for one rep from 2017-22, with the 2020 Midsummer Classic cancelled due to the pandemic.
Rebuilds don’t usually attract All-Stars, and ballots don’t include pitchers anyway—the selection process is handled by players and the commissioner’s office. So the Orioles’ chances for fans’ votes are everything here.
They could still get shut out, but reliever Rico Garcia is drawing attention across the league and has a legitimate shot. If Garcia makes it, it would make his story even more interesting than O’Hearn last year.
Garcia began yesterday ranking among all qualified relievers in opponent average (first at .083). opponent on-base percentage (first at .172). OPS (first at .327). hits per nine innings (first at 2.39). runners per nine innings (first at 5.47). WHIP (first at 0.61) and ERA (fourth at 0.68). His 40.2 percent whiff rate was third highest among players with a minimum 25 innings behind the Padres’ Mason Miller (52.2 percent) and Blue Jays’ Jeff Hoffman (41.9).
Hoffman isn’t making it.
Kyle Bradish has a path if he keeps his role steady. His ERA dropped to 3.44 after a 2.80 ERA in six May starts, and it’s only 1.72 in his last five outings.
Back to position players, and the voting question tightens around the Orioles’ biggest visibility test.
Rutschman has a shot at being selected by fans, which happened in 2024. Jonah Heim edged him in ’23. Rutschman collected his 31st RBI yesterday, second in the American League behind Dillon Dingler’s 43.
The Astros’ Yordan Alvarez seems like a lock at designated hitter. He went into yesterday batting .316/.426/.649 with 71 hits, 21 home runs and 44 RBIs. No one in the American League had more hits or homers, or a higher average, slugging and OPS (1.075).
The Rays’ Yandy Díaz also will get plenty of votes, but Basallo’s May production has put him in the conversation: he entered the chat with his .338/.376/.597 month of May, and his 112.4 mph double yesterday was a career high in exit velocity. He lined to center later at 107.3 mph.
That brings the whole thing to a specific kind of Orioles dilemma—one that feels almost too clean to ignore.
The question must be asked: Has any team had two catchers selected to the same All-Star Game?
It isn’t common, but it also isn’t unprecedented. The last time to look back is 2022, when the Braves’ Travis d’Arnaud and William Contreras were selected. For the American League. you have to go back to the Yankees of Yogi Berra and Elston Howard from 1957-62. per STATS. That stretch started with Bill Dickey and Buddy Rosar of the 1942 Yankees and continued with Rosar and Lou Boudreau of the ’43 Indians. Boudreau caught one game but it counted.
That’s it.
If Basallo stays hot this month, the Orioles could repeat that kind of odd, memorable outcome—one where voters see the same role in two different jerseys.
And then there are the roadblocks that fans will feel on their own timelines.
We’ll find out whether the star power of Pete Alonso and Gunnar Henderson gets them to Philadelphia. Bobby Witt Jr. is a big roadblock at shortstop and the Tigers’ Kevin McGonigle has made an early bid for Rookie of the Year.
Henderson’s .219/.271/.427 slash line yesterday created a large shadow over the 13 home runs.
Alonso has been much better at the plate after a surprisingly slow start to his Orioles career—he had two more hits yesterday—but Yankees fans will go hard on Ben Rice, who deserves the start. Nick Kurtz could run for mayor of Sacramento.
First base competition and popularity both matter, and the ballot makes sure the comparison doesn’t get blurred.
The White Sox’s Munetaka Murakami is on the 10-day injured list with a Grade two hamstring strain, but his 20 homers lead all first basemen and his .938 OPS is third.
Power numbers for the Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are down, but he’s made five trips to the All-Star Game and popularity can be a driving force in voting.
In Phase 1, the Orioles have built a ballot that looks like a roster—players listed everywhere fans would search first. Now the voting starts to answer a harsher question: will the representation match the story the season is trying to tell. or will the Orioles be forced to watch other teams get the louder clicks?.
Orioles All-Star Game voting Citizens Bank Park Samuel Basallo Adley Rutschman Pete Alonso Gunnar Henderson Rico Garcia Kyle Bradish MLB ballot