By Dan Hock
LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow, catcher Will Smith, shortstop Mookie Betts, first baseman Freddie Freeman and outfielder Teoscar Hernández were named National League All-Stars this afternoon, joining teammate Shohei Ohtani in Texas, who was voted in as a National League starter on Thursday. For the fifth straight season, the Dodgers will have five or more representatives at the game and have the second highest total of players going to the Midsummer Classic behind the Philadelphia Phillies, who will have seven representatives.
Glasnow, 30, earns his first All-Star game nomination after making 18 starts this season for the Dodgers. On the campaign, he is 8-5 with a 3.47 ERA and 143 strikeouts in 109 innings. His 143 strikeouts lead the Major Leagues and are the most strikeouts prior to the All-Star Game in Dodger history since Clayton Kershaw fanned 159 batters in 2017. His 11.81 strikeout per nine innings is second best in the Major Leagues behind Garret Crochet (Chicago-AL) and he is currently has the best strikeout per nine innings in franchise history, ahead of Kershaw’s all-time mark of 11.64, which he set in 2015. The Southern California native is in his ninth Major League season and is 38-32 with a 3.82 ERA and 821 strikeouts in 638.2 innings.
Smith, 29, will make his second straight trip to the All-Star Game as a reserve. In 75 games with the Boys in Blue this season, he is batting .274 with 15 homers and 55 RBI and is among leaders on the team in batting average (4th), runs (46, 3rd), hits (77, 4th), total bases (142, 4th), home runs (3rd) and RBI (4th). He ranks among the National League catchers in various categories, including home runs (1st), RBI (1st), batting average (2nd), hits (2nd), slugging percentage (.507, 1st) and on-base plus slugging (.854, 1st). In six big league seasons with the Dodgers, Smith has slashed .263/.355/.486 with 102 doubles, 106 homers and 361 RBI in 559 games.
Betts, 30, will earn his eighth straight trip to the All-Star Game and first ever as a shortstop. The Nashville native has been on the injured list since June 17 with a fractured left hand but appeared in 72 games prior to the injury. On the season, he is batting .304 with 10 homers, 40 RBI and a .893 OPS. He joins current Major Leaguer Fernando Tatis Jr. as the two players to make the All-Star Game as right fielders and shortstops. He is in his 11th Major League season, and he is a career .295 hitter with 262 homers and 796 RBI in 1,337 games.
Freeman, 34, earns his eighth All-Star Game selection and third straight as a member of the Dodgers. In 91 games with the Dodgers, he is batting .301 with 13 homers and 58 RBI. The 2020 National League MVP is amongst the Major League leaders in various categories, including runs (55, T-10th), extra-base hits (40, T-5th), batting average (6th) and total bases (167, T-6th). He recorded his 1,200th career RBI on Friday, delivering the game-winning hit against the Milwaukee Brewers, and is now 24 games from becoming the 252nd player in Major League Baseball history to record 2,000 career games played. He is currently third among active players in games played behind Andrew McCutchen (2,081) and Carlos Santana (2,013). Freeman is in his 15th Major League season and has amassed 334 homers, 1,201 RBI and is a lifetime .301 hitter in 1,976 career games.
Hernández, 31, earns his second All-Star nomination and his first as a member of the National League. The Dominican Republic native is slashing .258/.317/.484 with 19 homers and 60 RBI. He is second on the team on the team in homers, RBI and games played while leading National League outfielders in homers and RBI. He ranks among the best NL outfielders in various other categories, including runs (45, T-9th), hits (88, 4th), doubles (18, 4th), extra-base hits (38, T-1st), total bases (165, 2nd), slugging percentage (.484, 2nd), and OPS (.801, 7th). He is in his ninth season in the Major Leagues, and is a career .260 hitter with 178 homers and 533 RBI in 900 career games.
Ohtani, 30, earns his fourth straight All-Star Game nomination after making three straight as a member of the Angels (2021-23). The reigning American League MVP is having a banner season with the Dodgers, batting .316 with 28 homers and 65 RBI. During the game on Sunday afternoon, he became only the third Dodger in franchise history to record 20 stolen bases and 20 homers prior to the break, joining Matt Kemp (2011) and Davey Lopes (1979). He has won the National League Player twice this season, and set the franchise records with an RBI in 10 straight games (June 16-26) and seven consecutive games with an extra-base hit (June 16-22). He ranks among the best in multiple MLB categories: OPS (1.045, 2nd), slugging (.643, 2nd), total bases (220, 2nd), extra base hits (53, 2nd), home runs (28, 2nd), runs (72, 2nd), batting average (.316, 3rd), hits (108, 4th), RBI (65, T-5th) and OBP (.402, 7th). On April 21, he surpassed Hideki Matsui for the most home runs by a Japanese-born player in the Major Leagues with his 176th career longball against the Mets. The two-time American League MVP has been in the Major Leagues seven seasons and has slashed .279/.370/.567 with 199 homers and 502 RBI during his MLB career while posting a 38-19 record with a 3.01 ERA and 608 strikeouts across 86 career starts.
The 94th Midsummer Classic presented by Mastercard will be played on July 16 at Globe Life Field and will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and worldwide by partners in more than 200 countries. FOX Deportes will provide Spanish language coverage in the United States. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage of the All-Star Game, while Univision will provide Spanish language coverage on radio.
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