Color Scheme

Subscribe now
Seattle Mariners

Mariners’ Julio Rodriguez, George Kirby added to American League All-Star team

George Kirby of the Seattle Mariners throws a second-inning pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays at T-Mobile Park on Saturday, July 1, 2023, in Seattle. (Tribune News Service)
By Ryan Divish Seattle Times

SAN FRANCISCO — Holding a celebration of what’s good in baseball at T-Mobile Park and not having two of the Seattle Mariners’ top young stars participating? That just can’t happen.

On Tuesday afternoon, Major League Baseball announced that outfielder Julio Rodriguez and right-handed pitcher George Kirby have been added to the American League All-Star team.

They will join teammate Luis Castillo, who was announced as a member of the team on Sunday.

Rodriguez was chosen as a replacement for Houston’s Yordan Alvarez, who is currently on the injured list with a strained oblique. Kirby will take the spot of Tampa Bay starting pitcher Shane McClanahan, who was placed on the 15-day injured list with mid-back stiffness after feeling discomfort in his start in Seattle last week.

It’s the second straight year that Rodriguez has been named as an All-Star. He was already committed to participate in Monday’s Home Run Derby.

While Rodriguez hasn’t had the sort of season he or the Mariners had expected, he’s been more productive than people might think. He came into Tuesday’s game with a .246/.309/.414 slash line with 16 doubles, a triple, 14 homers, 46 RBI, 50 runs scored and 20 stolen bases.

Among American League outfielders, only six have higher FanGraphs wins above replacement (fWAR) than Rodriguez’s 2.3 fWAR. Four of them — Luis Robert of the White Sox (3.8), Adolis Garcia of the Rangers (3.1), Mike Trout of the Angels (3.1) and Randy Arozarena of the Rays (2.8) — were already selected for the team along with Austin Hays of the Orioles (1.8).

Trout will also need a replacement after suffering a broken hamate bone on Monday.

Kirby, 25, has posted a 7-7 record with a 3.21 ERA in 16 starts. In 101 innings, he’s struck out 86 batters with just nine walks. The nine walks are the fewest among qualified starters in MLB, while his 9.56 strikeout-to-walk ratio is the best in baseball.

He has delivered 13 quality starts, which is second most in the MLB behind only Marcus Stroman (14). But thanks to an inconsistent offense that has plagued them all season, the Mariners have an 8-5 record in those starts, and Kirby has a 7-7 record. He has a 2.1 WAR per Baseball Reference, which is eighth-highest in the AL, and a 2.3 fWAR, which is fifth-best among AL starters.