Eight All-Stars you should get to know this Midsummer Classic

While none of the players on this list (well, maybe one) should factor into the ongoing search for the ‘face of the MLB,’ each has done more than his fair share to earn his keep as a participant in Tuesday’s All-Star Game. And you never know, they could easily be the one that takes home the hardware  – and the requisite vehicle – as the game’s MVP as well. At the very least, we know one of guys about to mentioned will have a goat to show for it.

Here’s a look at a few names you may not know all that well headed into Tuesday night and should watch.

Chris Archer, Tampa Bay Rays

One of the foremost power pitchers in the game, it took him coming aboard as a replacement for one of the multiple AL All-Star hurler who pitched on Sunday, but he is here none the less and arrived via a rather peculiar fashion. He flew to Miami from Tampa on Sunday afternoon with fellow All-Star Mookie Betts in a plane that Betts piloted. And while those two elements combined make Archer’s road to the game unquestionably the most unique, what is also without question is the level of talent the 28-year-old brings. His 147 strikeouts are the second most in the AL, and a year after leading the game in losses, he has rallied to be one of the driving forces in making the Rays potentially follow in the footsteps in the Indians and Royals as October surprises. And whenever he does make his appearance on Tuesday night, prepare for it to be one of the most awe-inspiring showings of nastiness off that mound that evening. 

Zack Cozart, Cincinnati Reds

On Tuesday, one may look at the introductions of the National League All-Star team’s starting lineup and hear Cozart’s name get called and get slightly confused. And that is okay. Because it is not often that many 31-year-old, seven season veterans surge up the ranks of the game to becoming All-Start starters when he has not even as much been a member of a team before, or even hit as high as a .260 batting average or 20 home runs in a year before. However, Cozart’s mid-career upswing has been taken notice of finally by those outside of Cincinnati, and now has him in line not only to get the starting call Tuesday night, but to also get a goat in return from fellow All-Star and Reds teammate Joey Votto as a reward. Cozart is leading NL shortstops in OPS (.941) and is experiencing, as well as is on pace for, totaling personal career highs across the board. His payout in the Midsummer Classic is a great example of the fans keeping their eyes on the game and getting it right, prioritizing production over popularity. 

Corey Dickerson, Tampa Bay Rays

Probably the most surprising name to see checking in atop the American League batting leaderboard is Dickerson, who has experienced a breakthrough season in his second year in Tampa. Although the former Rockie connected for 24 long balls in his first year away from Coors, he did see the rest of his supporting stats dip down in the predictable fashion that many have experienced once departing Colorado. So in that vein, 2017 has been the ‘not so fast my friend’ year for Dickerson. He has raised his batting average back to match the highest point it ever was as a Rockie, at .317 and he is on pace to fly past his previous highs in home runs, total bases, RBI and extra base hits. He has fueled Tampa’s run as one of the surprise contenders of the summer, and as a result, he’s on deck to become the four Ray to ever start an All-Star Game. 

Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks

Admittedly, this is slightly a reach. I mean, plenty of people know about Goldschmidt, but it still feels as if not enough are giving him his just due. A return that if properly applied would realize that he has been the best all-around first baseman in baseball for last half-decade. A two-time MVP runner-up in 2013 and 2015, it could easily be argued that with the exception of Mike Trout, there is no more complete offensive player in baseball today. His full season averages since 2013 have been a .300/.402/.536, along with a 31 home runs, 110 RBI, 104 runs scored and 35 doubles. In 2014, when he missed over 50 games with a broken hand, he set his personal high in doubles with 39. Finally, to put the final stake in the ground of his status as one of the game’s foremost anomalies, he has stolen 66 bases over the last three years – at 6’3 and 225 pounds. And he is on pace to outdo all of those personally defined norms this season.

The shadow of playing in Arizona sure casts itself wide, because if he was playing on a coast, Goldy would be being widely celebrated in a manner that a first baseman has not been since Albert Pujols’ heyday. 

Avisail Garcia, Chicago White Sox

Garcia will be the sole White Sox in uniform at the All-Star Game, but it is far from him simply filling in as the mandatory member of a bad batch on the South Side this year. The 26-year-old slugger flew out the gates with a .368 average in June, and hits the halfway point at .310. This has been aided by the fact he decimates southpaws, hitting .400 against them over 75 at-bats on the year. For a team that is putting plenty of its assets on the market, it says something that Garcia’s name is nearly never mentioned in that process. This is because players of his caliber make rebuilding processes not be as endless as they can seem. 

Ender Inciarte, Atlanta Braves

When it is all said and done, the deal that landed lauded Braves rookie Dansby Swanson in Atlanta could be just as equally applauded for the fact that Inciarte came over in at as well. In his first year with the club, the 26-year-old center fielder took home a Gold Glove. Now a year later, he has kept his defense at that same elite level, leading all NL center fielders in put outs and widest range factor, but has also kicked up his offense slightly too. The Braves leadoff hitter checks in with an on-base % of .351, along with a .302 batting average and a career-best seven homers already.

Inciarte will likely never be a stand-alone superstar, but he’s the type of steadily developing talent who could have a surprisingly high number of All-Star Games and trophies on his mantle when his days are done.

Jose Ramirez, Cleveland Indians

Ramirez’s stock has grown over the past year due to the Cleveland’s run through the 2016 postseason and subsequent rise in the team’s popularity afterwards. However, what continues to be underestimated is just how vital the ultra-versatile Ramirez is in serving as the driving force behind the club’s success. His rise continues to be one of the most unforeseen rises to elite levels that has occurred in many years. After never hitting only 15 home runs in parts of five minor league seasons in full, Ramirez enters the break with 17 already in 2016. His 49 extra-base hits are tops in the AL, built largely on a nine-game multi-hit game streak in June, including five games of reaching the three-hit plateau. 

Justin Smoak, Toronto Blue Jays

The book seemed to be written on Justin Smoak by this point in his career. Former big name prospect who couldn’t put it all together. The 30-year-old had spent a handful of slightly productive, but largely underwhelming seasons in the game, split between Texas and Seattle before landing in Toronto in 2015. And after two years of bouncing in and out of the Blue Jay lineup, Smoak made the most of the opportunity opened up by the departure of Edwin Encarnacion, swatting a career-high 23 home runs in the first half alone. And it surprisingly solidified him a spot as the most out-of-the-blue All-Star starter of perhaps the last decade.