The 2022 All-Star Break is almost upon us, and with the All-Star game getting closer, the Minnesota Twins were patiently waiting to find out which of their players would be representing the team at the Midsummer Classic. With the roster being released today, the team has to wonder no more.
Byron Buxton and Luis Arraez will be the Twins contingent at the All-Star Game later this month. Both are well deserving candidates, and to top it off, they got to find out about the honor in a pretty cool way:
A moment our 2 All-Stars will never forget 🥹@Arraez_21 | @OfficialBuck103 pic.twitter.com/m6hY5ChsG1
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) July 10, 2022
Arraez was always going to be a lock to make the All-Star game after the first half he’s had, even if he wasn’t chosen as the starter. Coming into today, Arraez was slashing .355/.426/.457, with a 158 OPS+, and 10.7 BB%, all career-high numbers.
His offensive game has taken a big leap after an offseason of working with Nelson Cruz, and it’s resulted in him hitting for more power, walking more, and leading all of baseball in batting average and on-base percentage. He’s dominating right now and deserves to be at the game.
As for Buxton, his case isn’t as iron-clad as Arraez’s, he’s still very deserving of this honor. Buxton currently ranks fifth in the MLB in homers and tenth in slugging percentage. He’s striking out a lot, and his batting average and on-base percentage are low due to his slumping, but at least his defense is still strong.
He’s on pace to play 123 games, a number that would rank as the second-highest number of games in his career. His bWAR is currently sitting at 2.9, as well, putting him on pace for an impressive season.
The pair were a part of the Twins’ Vote ABC All-Star slogan, and while Carlos Correa won’t be joining them, it’s great that Arraez and Buxton will join Twins Top prospects Spencer Steer and Matt Wallner at All-Star weekend and follow in the footsteps of Taylor Rogers and Nelson Cruz after they represented the team in 2021.