Three new players have been added to the All-Star Game rosters in advance of the festivities next week. Major League Baseball announced the addition of Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka to the American League All-Star roster, while Pirates closer Felipe Vázquez and Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff have been assigned to the National League camp.
The three pitchers will replace Blue Jays right-hander Marcus Stroman (shoulder soreness), Diamondbacks righty Zack Greinke, and Brewers lefty reliever Josh Hader (back stiffness) on their respective teams. Unlike Stroman and Hader, Greinke does not appear to be battling an injury, but is expected to miss the All-Star Game because of an undisclosed personal matter instead.
As should be expected from any All-Star nominee, Tanaka, Vázquez, and Woodruff have delivered solid results over the first half of the 2019 season so far. Tanaka is 5-5 in 18 starts with a 3.86 ERA, 2.1 BB/9, 7.7 SO/9, and 2.1 fWAR (eighth-most among qualifying AL starters) through 105 innings pitched. Vázquez, meanwhile, profiles as the seventh-best reliever in the league with 19 saves and a 2.19 ERA, 2.4 BB/9, 14.4 SO/9, and 1.4 fWAR across 37 innings. Woodruff — the only pitcher of the three who had yet to receive an All-Star designation — carries an NL-leading 10 wins across his first 18 starts of the year, underscored by a 3.67 ERA, 2.1 BB/9, 10.5 SO/9, and 3.1 fWAR in 108 innings.
The All-Star Game is scheduled to kick off at Progressive Field on Tuesday, July 9 at 7:30 PM EDT.
