The Orioles have four All-Stars! Rutschman, Hays, Cano, and Bautista are headed to Seattle

The last year the Baltimore Orioles had multiple players representing them in the All-Star Game happens to also be the last year that the Orioles made the postseason, 2016. That year they were represented by Brad Brach, Zack Britton, Manny Machado, Mark Trumbo, and Matt Wieters. Since then it’s been a string of years with just the minimum of one on the team, most recently Jorge López in 2022.

This year, however, the Orioles are finally back in playoff contention and have been one of the best teams in baseball all year. That fact wasn’t reflected in the fan voting for the starting lineups, despite the fact that many people voted for Adley Rutschman.

So, the fans didn’t come through. But the players and coaches responsible for making the picks came through. In the end, the Orioles have multiple players named to the All-Star Game for the first time in seven seasons. Those players are Adley Rutschman, Austin Hays, Félix Bautista, and Yennier Cano. Well deserved, gents! Read on for more info on the Orioles’ All-Stars. You can find the full rosters for both the AL and NL here.

Adley Rutschman: It wasn’t that long ago that we all thought Adley Rutschman was going to be the first Oriole to be voted in as a starter for the All-Star Game since Manny Machado in 2018. That didn’t happen, but Rutschman is still going in as a reserve after putting together quite the sophomore season so far in 2023.

Rutschman spent the first two months of the season wowing us with both his team leadership and his skills at the plate. He got us excited right away with a home run and four RBI on Opening Day, and just continued his onslaught as the season went on. He finished May with an OPS of .853 and an OBP over .400. He tailed off in June, but he is still one of MLB’s brightest young stars and this is surely just the first of many ASGs to which he’ll be named.

One bonus of Rutschman not getting voted in as the starter is that puts in place the possibility that he could end the game on the field and get to show the world just how special Adley hugs are. And he might just get to hug the big guy himself.

Félix Bautista: After spending his first five professional seasons in the Rookie League and not making it to A-ball until he was 24 years old, it’s possible that Bautista never thought he’d make it to an All-Star Game. And yet, here he is, one of the most successful relief pitchers in baseball. Bautista’s numbers won’t look quite as gaudy in the All-Star bullpen as they do in comparison to his fellow Orioles’ relief pitchers, But they are still incredible numbers.

A 1.16 ERA. 79 strikeouts in 38.2 innings. He has struck out 50% of the batters he has faced this year. His WHIP is below one at 0.96. His fastball averages 100 and hits 103. He’s both fun and terrifying to watch and I couldn’t be happier for him.

Yennier Cano: This one was a surprise to me, I have to say. Cano has been incredible but he hasn’t been with the team for the entire season, and has fallen off a bit after his incredible start. Still, it’s hard to argue with the overall package. He pitched 21.2 innings over 17 games before he allowed a run and like Bautista, his stats are incredible. A 1.12 ERA in 40.1 innings pitched and a WHIP of 0.84. Overall opponents are batting .199 against him. It’s gonna be awesome to see both The Mountain and The Rock in the back end of the bullpen for the AL All-Stars.

Cano came to the Orioles in the trade that sent last year’s Oriole All-Star, Jorge López, to the Twins. Some fans were up in arms about the trade at the time, but I think we have to tip our cap to Mike Elias on this one.

Austin Hays: It wasn’t hard to imagine a year when Rutschman and Bautista made the All-Star team, but Hays probably wasn’t at the top of the list of other players we might see there. Before the season, Hays’s talent was undeniable but between injuries and inconsistent play, he hadn’t been able to put it all together.

This year he’s been on fire both on the plate and on defense, where he has mastered Camden Yards’ vast left field in front of Mount Walltimore. He’s been the best hitter on the Orioles, coming into Saturday with a slash line of .313/.353/.493, and he has flirted with best batting average in the American League over the past few weeks.

Unfortunately, Hays had to leave today’s game after his first at-bat after he collided with the first baseman and suffered a hip contusion. Hopefully for the Orioles, he’ll be back to new well before the All-Star Game.

Wow. Just wow. FOUR ALL-STARS! The Orioles are an exciting team and people are noticing. I am really looking forward to the All-Star Game on July 11th.