Four rookies selected to MLB All-Star Game

Major League baseball have announced the reserves for the 2024 All-Star game in Texas, and 32 of the players selected are first-time All-Stars, four oh which are rookies.

Relief pitcher Mason Miller of the Oakland Athletics, 30-year-old starting pitcher Shota Imanaga of the Chicago Cubs, starting pitcher Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates, and center fielder Jackson Merrill of the San Diego Padres were all selected to the All-Star game in their first MLB season.

Mason Miller was a third-round pick out of Gardner-Webb University in the 2021 MLB Draft. Miller actually started six games in 2023 for Oakland, but did not lose his rookie designation. The Athletics moved Miller to a closing role in 2024 and he has taken the league by storm, throwing over 100-mph 278 times and maxing out at 103.7 mph. Miller, 25, is 1-1 on the season with a 2.39 ERA and 14 saves. He has struck out 66 batters in only 37.2 innings pitched.

Shota Imanaga was an International signing by the Chicago Cubs this past off-season. Imanaga came to the league without as much fanfare as other past Japanese pitchers but has been one of the best starters in the National League this season. In 16 starts this season, Imanaga is 7-2 with a 3.16 ERA and has struck out 92 batters while only walking 15. Some may argue that Imanaga does not qualify as a rookie because of his age and time playing in the Japanese pro league, but this is his Major League debut and he has proven to be a dominant force on the mound for Chicago.

Paul Skenes was the No. 1 pick in last year’s MLB draft and entered his professional career under a microscope we have not seen since the likes of Stephen Strasburg in 2009. Skenes has not disappointed in his first 10 starts, going 5-0 with a 2.12 ERA. He has struck out 78 batters in 59.1 innings pitched, while only allowing 48 hits. Skenes is the first player to make the all-star team the season after being selected first overall in the draft. Skenes leads a talented 2023 class that has already seen him make the All-Stars and outfielder Wyatt Langford of Texas hit .271 in his first three months in the Majors.

Jackson Merrill, 21, is the youngest player to play in the All-Star game since 2013. He is just one year removed from playing in the Futures Game, Merrill has been red hot from the outset of the season. He is hitting .288 with 12 homeruns, while also knocking in 46 runs and stealing 10 bases. 

With 32 first-time all-stars and 19 players under the age of 27, Major League baseball is getting younger. Making the future of the game fun and exciting and in good hands.