There was joy in the D-backs’ training room a week ago Sunday morning when manager Torey Lovullo gathered the team there for an announcement.

Eduardo Escobar, Lovullo told the room, was headed to his first-ever All-Star Game.

Escobar's joy, which resulted in tears, was understandable. It was the first All-Star selection of his 11-year big league career and it was the realization of a dream he had since he watched his first Midsummer Classic on television in Venezuela.

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"I'm so happy," Escobar said that day. "Today is a special day for me."

But it wasn't just Escobar who was happy. His manager and teammates were almost as moved by his selection.

"Obviously he's a great player," shortstop Nick Ahmed said. "But more than that, he's a guy that brings positive energy every day. He's got a smile on his face all the time. He's having fun. I think that helps bring the best out everybody else around him. You know he takes things very seriously; he works very hard. But at the same time, he enjoys it -- he's got a smile on his face, and he can laugh at himself. He has a way of kind of galvanizing people around his smile and all the phrases."

Ah yes, the phrases are part of what makes Escobar so entertaining. Here's a look at them, and some other fun facts:

The phrases

Escobar has some favorite words and phrases that he uses all the time that he uses whether they fit the occasion or not.

"Unbelievable!"

"Proud of you!"

"Congratulations!"

The team even had T-shirts made up that said "Congratulations" on the front and "Proud of you" on the back.

Kole Calhoun as "The Lobster"

Last year during batting practice, Escobar would yell out, "Early and often!" when outfielder Kole Calhoun was hitting.

Calhoun thought that Escobar was yelling, "Eating lobster!" instead of "Early and often."

So now any time Calhoun is in the batting cage, Escobar can be heard yelling "Lobster!"

No cats allowed

Escobar doesn't know exactly when his fear of cats started, but it's very real. No joke. Well, except to his teammates.

Outfielder David Peralta said that former D-backs infielder Ildemaro Vargas was the one who spilled the beans about Escobar being scared of cats. His teammates have had plenty of fun with the knowledge.

They've hidden cat stuffed animals in his locker and even brought in a live cat or two. Real or fake, Escobar's reaction is the same -- he sprints out of the room.

"I don't like cats, man," Escobar said. "I don't know why, but I don't."

Owes it to Ozzie

When Escobar was 19 years old and playing in the White Sox organization, then-Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen saw him taking grounders on a backfield at the team's Spring Training complex.

It was an off day for the big league team and Guillen had come to watch his son, Oney, who was playing ahead of Escobar.

"I saw him taking infield, and he was the best infielder I saw," Guillen told the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. "I said, 'Wait a minute, this is the best infielder I see, and he's my son's backup? This is the best infielder we have. Why is he not playing?'"

Fogo Power

Escobar's favorite restaurant is the Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chao and when he hits a home run he will often refer to "Fogo Power!" -- which, of course, led to the team wearing Fogo Power T-shirts for a time a couple of seasons ago.

Be Like Mike

Escobar's favorite basketball player is far and away Michael Jordan. He says his dream is to one day meet Jordan.

Giving back

The Eduardo Escobar Foundation provides food, medical supplies, basic necessities and baseball equipment in Venezuela.

Escobar and his wife, Eucaris, are also heavily involved in community efforts in Arizona constantly asking D-backs senior vice president of corporate and community impact, Debbie Castaldo, what more he can do to help. As a result, he was the D-backs' nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award in 2019 and '20.