The Guardians are sending three first-time All-Stars to Philadelphia next week, with Cade Smith, Parker Messick and Travis Bazzana all earning their first trip to the Midsummer Classic.
That puts Cleveland in some rare company. According to Elias, the Guardians are only the fifth team in history to have multiple rookies named All-Stars, joining the 1951 White Sox, 1960 Orioles, 2008 Cubs and 2014 Yankees.
Smith’s case is easy to understand: he leads Major League Baseball with 26 saves. Messick and Bazzana, meanwhile, look like they’re climbing fast toward star status, if they’re not there already.
It also extends a remarkable run for Cleveland. This is the 10th straight year the Guardians have sent multiple players to the All-Star Game, a streak topped only by the Yankees and Dodgers among active teams.
But All-Star nods can be funny things. They don’t always tell the full story of a season, and they don’t always define a career.
Sometimes they’re a snapshot of a player at his peak. Sometimes they’re the kind of detail that gets tucked away until somebody starts rattling off random names over a barstool conversation with the game on.
Cleveland has had plenty of those since 2000.
Juan González was one of them in 2001. The outfielder and DH put together a strong rebound season after a disappointing year with the Tigers, and it turned into one of the more overlooked campaigns since Jacobs Field opened in 1994.
He hit more than 30 homers for the last time in his career, drove in 140 runs, and on June 22, 2001, launched a homer that made him the then-all-time home run leader among Puerto Rican-born players. González started the All-Star Game in Seattle alongside Roberto Alomar, the only Cleveland representatives that year.
He went 0-for-1 in the game.
Bob Wickman made the team in 2005, which still feels a little surprising given how often he was one of the most trusted closers around. He had already been an NL All-Star in 2000 before coming to Cleveland, but his 2005 season was one of the best of his career.
Wickman led MLB with 45 saves, posted a 2.47 ERA and even picked up some down-ballot AL Cy Young votes. In the All-Star Game, though, the line was rough: 0 IP, 1 ER, 0 H, 1 BB.
Then there was Cliff Lee in 2008, a selection that was unexpected not because he didn’t deserve it, but because of how far he’d come. One year after a negative WAR season and a 6.29 ERA, Lee turned in a monster year, going 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA and four complete games.
He won the AL Cy Young over Roy Halladay and others by a wide margin, then pitched well again the next season before being traded at the deadline to the Phillies and later appearing in the 2009 World Series. In the All-Star Game, he threw two innings as the starter, allowing one hit and no runs while striking out three.
Danny Salazar’s lone All-Star nod came in 2016, a season many fans have probably filed away under the bigger storylines of that year. He was selected alongside Francisco Lindor and Corey Kluber, but withdrew because of injury.
At the time, he led Cleveland in ERA and ranked third on the club in both strikeouts and wins, coming off a June that earned him AL Pitcher of the Month honors. His All-Star Game stat line reads DNP.
Andrew Miller’s 2016 run with Cleveland was another one-time All-Star case worth remembering, even if the season itself is often overshadowed by what came before and after. He had been acquired from San Diego ahead of the 2018 trade deadline along with Adam Cimber and quickly took over the closer role from Cody Allen.
In 2019, he saved 34 games with a 3.30 ERA. The shortened 2020 season may have been his best shot at another All-Star appearance, since he led baseball with 16 saves in 60 games and posted a 2.05 ERA.
In the All-Star Game, he worked one inning and allowed two hits, two earned runs and two walks while striking out two.
And then there’s Andrés Giménez in 2022, a selection that fit the moment perfectly. If there were other Guardians who could have filled that spot in this rundown, Giménez still made the most sense because he put on a show with the glove in Hollywood.
His 2022 numbers stand out now as the outlier in his career, with a .297 batting average and a .371 on-base percentage, but that season was never just about the stat line. It came during the second year after the Lindor trade, when Giménez was one of four players Cleveland got back and none of them remain with the organization now.
That young, scrappy group caught fire late, won the AL Central, and sparked the endless debate over who won the trade. For one night, though, the story was simpler: Cleveland had a second baseman who could hit and defend at an elite level, and he showed it on the All-Star stage.
In Other News...
Guardians Fans May Not Love Where Stuart Fairchild Just Resurfaced
Stuart Fairchilds stop in Cleveland was brief, and his next landing spot already looks a little more promising. After being designated for assignment by the Guardians and then electing free agency, the outfielder has resurfaced in the Mariners organization, where he wasted little time making an impression in the Arizona Complex League by homering in his first game.
For Guardians fans, the more frustrating part may be the timing. Fairchild never found much traction during his stint in Cleveland, but Seattles rash of outfield injuries could give him a clearer path upward if he keeps producing. It is the kind of roster turn that can make a short-lived move look a lot more consequential in hindsight. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians Trade Deadline Wish List Just Got A Lot More Real
The Guardians search for a lineup boost is starting to feel a lot less theoretical as the trade deadline approaches. Cleveland has been linked to outfield help, and the names surfacing fit the kind of swing the front office has been chasing - a player with real power and another who could bring longer-term value without forcing the club to empty the cupboard.
Mickey Moniak and Garrett Mitchell each offer something different, which is part of what makes the situation worth watching. Moniak brings the appeal of a bat that has flashed big slugging production and a contract situation that would make him more of a short-term add, while Mitchell would be a tougher pull from a contending Brewers club but comes with years of control attached. With the AL Central and Wild Card races both tightening, Clevelands deadline plan may come down to how aggressively it wants to push for help now versus protecting what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Guardians May Be Running Out Of Time With Kody Huff
The Guardians have already leaned heavily on their player pipeline this season, bringing nine players to the majors before the All-Star break, and that kind of churn has only sharpened the focus on who might be next. Kody Huff has put himself into that conversation with a breakout offensive year, hitting .272/.384/.498 with 14 doubles and 11 home runs, while also showing he can handle more than one spot on the field.
Acquired from the Rockies in 2023, Huff has expanded beyond catcher and given Cleveland a look at him at first base and third base as well. That versatility matters for a club that has been willing to move prospects quickly when the roster calls for it, and it leaves the Guardians with a decision to make on how soon they want to test him at the highest level. [Read more 🡒]