Ceddanne Rafaela finally has the All-Star selection his season has earned, but Boston knows the real story starts after the break.
The Red Sox outfielder has been named an MLB All-Star for the first time in his career, a deserved milestone for a 25-year-old who has put together the kind of all-around season that gets noticed. Rafaela is hitting .283 with eight home runs and 39 RBIs, and he also leads the American League with a 1.9 Defensive WAR.
That last part has become almost routine for him. Rafaela has built his reputation on the glove, and he won his first Gold Glove last season.
Given the way he’s played in the field again this year, he looks like a strong bet to add another one. What’s changed is the bat.
It has come along year by year, and that growth has made him one of the most complete players in Boston’s lineup.
This isn’t the first time Rafaela has forced his way into the All-Star conversation, either. Last season, he was squarely in the mix after establishing himself as one of the game’s best defensive outfielders while also putting together a strong first half at the plate. Through his first 92 games before the break, he was hitting .271 with 14 home runs and 48 RBIs.
There was room to argue about whether he should have made the team over the players who did - Aaron Judge, Riley Greene, Javier Baez, Randy Arozarena, Byron Buxton, Steven Kwan, and Julio Rodriguez - but his case was real. He was impacting games in every phase.
The concern for Boston is what happened next. Rafaela’s production dropped sharply after the All-Star break last year.
Over his final 64 games, he hit .218 with two home runs and 15 RBIs. Then he went 0-for-10 in three Wild Card games against the New York Yankees.
That’s the backdrop for this first All-Star nod: the Red Sox have seen Rafaela start fast before. Now they need the second half to look different.
Boston has won 12 of its last 15 games and has clawed back into the playoff race after a rough start. There’s still plenty of season left, but if the Red Sox are going to make a real push for October, they need their best players locked in. Rafaela has become one of the most important of them.
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