There are always a handful of New York Yankees representatives at the All-Star Game, but this year, they could have a couple of first-timers.
A few Yankees look like locks to make the team. Aaron Judge would make it if he went hitless for the next three weeks. Starting pitcher Max Fried is well on his way as well. But those were the names we expected; how about the ones we didn’t?
The Yankees didn’t even expect Trent Grisham to be a regular starter this year. He appeared in just 76 games a year ago and with the call-up of rookie Jasson Domínguez, the outfield looked too full for Grisham to earn a spot.
But instead, Grisham has hit so well that the Yankees haven’t been able to deny him. One baseball insider believes that will earn him his spot in Atlanta.
On Wednesday, Jim Bowden of The Athletic projected Grisham as the starting center fielder for the American League on this year’s All-Star rosters. The game takes place at Truist Park on Jul. 15.
“This is not a typo! Grisham leads AL center fielders in OPS (.846) and home runs (13) while playing Gold Glove-caliber center field for the Yankees,” Bowden wrote.
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Though Grisham’s production has been well above expectations, he’s also helped by a weak center field pool in the AL.
Bowden tabbed Julio Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners to be his backup, and other options might include Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins and Jake Meyers of the Houston Astros.
Grisham will have to keep up his excellent production for another month to make sure he earns his spot. But what a story it would be for the throw-in in the Juan Soto trade to make it to the All-Star Game the year after Soto’s departure.
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