J-Rod, Kirby added to AL All-Star squad

SAN FRANCISCO -- It turns out that the Mariners will have more than a one-man presence when T-Mobile Park hosts the All-Star Game in one week, as Julio Rodríguez and George Kirby were named to the American League roster after Seattle’s 6-0 win on Tuesday against the Giants.

Rodríguez replaced Houston outfielder/designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who has been on the injured list since June 9 with right oblique discomfort, and Kirby took the spot of Rays ace Shane McClanahan, who was placed on the IL on Saturday with mid-back tightness.

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They join Luis Castillo, who was named to the team when rosters were announced by MLB on Sunday.

This will be Rodríguez’s second straight Midsummer Classic after he was the Majors’ lone rookie selection in last year’s event at Dodger Stadium. And it’ll be the first for Kirby, who’s been in The Show for only 14 months but has emerged as one of the AL’s premier young pitchers.

Rodríguez is also slated to compete in the T-Mobile Home Run Derby on Monday, looking to take the crown against a loaded field in his home venue after an electric performance last year.

“Being rewarded with the opportunity to be able to step on that field in front of the fans in Seattle and in front of my family that's going to be there, it's definitely gonna be a lot of fun,” Rodríguez said.

Rodríguez’s production in 2023 hasn’t been at the level of his epic 2022, when he won the AL Rookie of the Year Award, but he represents big star appeal for the game, the city of Seattle and the event itself.

The 22-year-old entered Tuesday hitting .246/.309/.414 (.723 OPS) with 13 homers, 46 RBIs, 16 doubles, one triple and 20 stolen bases, good for a 105 wRC+ (league average is 100) and a team-leading 2.3 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.

In last year’s All-Star Game, he went 0-for-2 and played the final five innings in center field. He’s the 13th player to earn multiple All-Star selections with the Mariners.

“It wasn't disappointment,” Rodriguez said of being left off the initial roster. “It was, OK there is still work to do. We've got to keep on going. We've got to keep moving forward. There are games to win -- and that was my focus.”

He just hopes that he gets to keep his own locker when his star-studded cast of teammates arrive.

“There are a lot of guys that I feel like that I can learn from,” Rodríguez said. “So I'm definitely looking forward to talking to a lot of the guys.”

Kirby is in line to make his final start of the first half on Thursday in Houston, which would set him up to pitch on normal rest in the All-Star Game. The Mariners are tied for the MLB lead with 43 quality starts after Logan Gilbert’s gem on Tuesday at Oracle Park, and Kirby is a big reason why. His 13 are tied for the AL lead with Toronto’s Kevin Gausman.

“I didn't expect it at this point,” Kirby said. “You just play your whole life for these types of moments, so it's pretty, pretty cool.”

Kirby leads the Majors, by a mile, with a 9.56 strikeout-to-walk ratio, which has him on a historic pace. And overall, Kirby is 7-7 with a 3.21 ERA, 86 strikeouts and nine walks in 101 innings while holding opposing hitters to a slash line of .248/.268/.390 (.658 OPS). He’s essentially put the Mariners in position to win in each of his 16 starts.

So when Kirby wasn’t selected originally, Gilbert told his rotation mate that he had a hunch it would manifest.

“I kind of felt excited as if it was almost like my name being called,” Gilbert said, just after his own epic performance, “just because you see what he's doing. He's been dominant this whole season. And I told him the other day for some reason, I'm like, 'Hey, I think you're still getting in.'”

Kirby is the ninth pitcher in franchise history drafted or signed by the club to be named an All-Star, joining Mark Langston (1987), Matt Young (1983), Kasahiro Sasaki (twice; 2001-02), Félix Hernández (six times; 2009, 2011-15), Michael Pineda (2011), Hisashi Iwakuma (2013), Edwin Díaz (2018) and Yusei Kikuchi (2021).

In addition to Castillo, Kirby and Rodríguez, Mariners manager Scott Servais will serve as a member of the AL coaching staff, and Mariners head athletic trainer Kyle Torgerson will be a part of the AL training staff.