Blue Jays slugger Guerrero Jr. named All-Star Game starter for third time

Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is headed back to the MLB’s All-Star Game.

It will be the fourth appearance at the event for the first baseman and the third time he gets to start for the American League.

Guerrero Jr. is hitting .298 with 13 home runs and 50 runs batted in on the season thus far. He’s leading the Blue Jays in home runs, doubles, hits, and plenty of other batting stats.

The 25-year-old started the season slowly but has picked things up in recent months.

The All-Star starters were determined through a fan vote. Guerrero Jr. beat out Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle to earn this starter spot.

The full list of American League All-Star starters can be found below. Four other players from the AL East were named starters.

  • First base: Guerrero Jr. (Blue Jays)
  • Second base: Jose Altuve (Houston Astros)
  • Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson (Baltimore Orioles)
  • Third base: José Ramírez (Cleveland Guardians)
  • Catcher: Adley Rutschman (Baltimore Orioles)
  • Designated hitter: Yordan Alvarez (Houston Astros)
  • Outfielders: Aaron Judge (New York Yankees), Juan Soto (New York Yankees), Steven Kwan (Cleveland Guardians)

The starters for the National League are as follows.

  • First base: Bryce Harper (Philadelphia Phillies)
  • Second base: Ketel Marte (Arizona Diamondbacks)
  • Shortstop: Trea Turner (Philadelphia Phillies)
  • Third base: Alec Bohm (Philadelphia Phillies)
  • Catcher: William Contreras (Chicago White Sox)
  • Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers)
  • Outfielders: Fernando Tatis Jr. (San Diego Padres), Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Brewers), Jurickson Profar (San Diego Padres)

The pitchers and reserves for the event will be announced on Sunday.

While Guerrero Jr. is representing the team at the heralded event, this season has not been a good one for the Blue Jays. They currently sit in last place in the AL East with a record of 39-46, good for 15 games behind the division-leading Orioles.

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