The climb from the Draft to the All-Star Game usually takes time. Chase Burns has turned it into a two-year sprint.
Taken second overall on July 14, 2024, Burns will be in Philadelphia for his first Midsummer Classic exactly two years later on July 14, 2026. For the 23-year-old Reds right-hander, it’s a rapid rise that still feels a little surreal.
“That’s pretty cool," said Burns, who was selected with rookie teammate Sal Stewart. "I never thought I’d be in a spot like this to have an opportunity to go pitch in an All-Star Game.
I kind of got to give a pat on my back for how disciplined I was and the hard work I put in during the offseason. I’m just thankful for the opportunity God has given me.”
Burns is one of three players from the 2024 Draft to reach the All-Star Game in two years or less, joining Guardians infielder Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 overall pick, and A’s slugger Nick Kurtz, who went No. 4. The list of players who’ve done it also includes Bryce Harper, Jacob Wilson and Kris Bryant.
For pitchers, though, it’s a different kind of club. The leap is harder to make, and the workload is heavier to manage. Terry Francona pointed to that reality when talking about how quickly Burns has developed.
"Normally you see that big jump in progression when you’re in the Minor Leagues," manager Terry Francona said. "But because guys are getting here so quickly, you’re starting to see that here.
The problem can be if you’re not good, you get beat up. But the good ones you see are getting better and developing.”
Burns’ path has been anything but ordinary. He didn’t pitch in 2024 after being drafted out of Wake Forest, then logged only 13 Minor League starts before getting the call. His big league debut on June 24, 2025, against the Yankees was electric: five strikeouts in a row to start the night and eight total in five innings.
The stuff was obvious right away. So were the growing pains.
Burns had four games with 10 strikeouts in 2025, but he reached six innings only twice in eight starts. A right flexor strain sidelined him for a month, and he finished the year in the bullpen for the final month and one postseason game.
His rookie line: 0-3 with a 4.57 ERA in 13 appearances.
Still, the Reds saw a pitcher who could handle the pace.
"He's extremely mature as a pitcher," Reds 2024 All-Star pitcher Hunter Greene said. "He's done such a good job navigating everything.
He's transitioned very well at this level. Especially not having the workload in the Minor Leagues, where he's thrown 150, 180-plus innings.
He hasn't been able to do that. He trusts himself.
I'm happy for him. Definitely not going to be his last All-Star [Game]."
This spring, Burns had to win a rotation job in camp. At one point, his buildup was shortened in a “deload” so he could work on a better between-starts routine, manage arm fatigue and improve flexibility.
He says the lessons from last season stuck with him.
“I think that’s my personality, just trying to learn every day, trying to get better every day," he said. "It’s a long season, so if you can improve one percent every day then you’re going to be OK.”
The Reds needed that growth to happen fast. Greene and Nick Lodolo opened the season on the injured list, and Rhett Lowder joined them in May.
Burns became the stabilizing force, and the numbers tell the story: 10-1 with a 2.40 ERA in 17 starts and 97 1/3 innings. He leads the majors with 15 starts allowing two runs or fewer, the Reds are 13-4 in his outings, and his 4.3 Baseball Reference WAR ranks second among MLB pitchers behind Cristopher Sánchez’s 4.9.
He’s getting there with a simple, nasty formula: a four-seam fastball that can reach 100 mph and a slider that keeps hitters guessing. Burns owns a 32.8 percent swing-and-miss rate, good for the 92nd percentile in MLB, and his slider’s 53.7 percent whiff rate is tied for fourth-best among any pitch in the majors.
That’s a fast track by any measure. And for Chase Burns, it’s taken him all the way to the All-Star Game.
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