MLB All-Star Game preview

Deep in the heart of Texas, Major League Baseball’s best will meet at Globe Life Field in Arlington for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 16 at 8:00 p.m. EST.

This will be the 94th MLB All-Star Game, the second time the Texas Rangers have hosted the All-Star Game, the other being 1995, and the first at Globe Life Field.

The American League had won nine straight All-Star Games against the National League before 2023 when the NL won that year’s contest at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

American League

Starting lineup

1. Steven Kwan, LF, Cleveland Guardians

2. Gunnar Henderson, SS, Baltimore Orioles

3. Juan Soto, RF, New York Yankees

4. Aaron Judge, CF, New York Yankees

5. Yordan Alvarez, DH, Houston Astros

6. José Ramírez, 3B, Cleveland Guardians

7. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B, Toronto Blue Jays

8. Adley Rutschman, C, Baltimore Orioles

9. Marcus Semien, 2B, Texas Rangers

Soto, Judge, Henderson and Rutschman, four of the 22 major league players with at least 3.2 WAR in 2024, have driven their teams to two of the league’s three best records, while Guerrero Jr. has been the most productive player on an underwhelming Blue Jays offense.

The other best record in the league belongs to the Guardians, who are led by Ramírez, who along with Judge, made his fourth straight All-Star Game in 2024, and Kwan, who leads the majors with a .352 batting average.

Alvarez is on pace for his fourth straight season of at least 30 home runs, while Semien, who will replace the Astros’ Jose Altuve, who is nursing a bruised hand, has taken a big step back from his All-Star season in 2023.

Other notable AL All-Star position players include Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez, shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. and Boston Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran.

Along with Altuve, Minnesota Twins shortstop Carlos Correa, Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker and Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers are also inactive for the All-Star Game.

Starting pitcher: Corbin Burnes, RHP, Baltimore Orioles

Since being acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2024 offseason, Burnes has been the ace the O’s wanted, as he is second in the league in earned run average and tied for second in quality starts.

The Detroit Tigers’ Tarik Skubal, the Royals’ Seth Lugo, the Chicago White Sox’s Garrett Crochet and the Oakland Athletics’ Mason Miller are among the league’s other All-Star pitchers.

Manager: Bruce Bochy, Texas Rangers

Bochy came out of retirement to win his fourth World Series title in 2023, giving the Rangers their first championship, but Texas is third in the AL West at 46-50.

National League

Starting lineup

1. Ketel Marte, 2B, Arizona Diamondbacks

2. Shohei Ohtani, DH, Los Angeles Dodgers

3. Trea Turner, SS, Philadelphia Phillies

4. Bryce Harper, 1B, Philadelphia Phillies

5. William Contreras, C, Milwaukee Brewers

6. Christian Yelich, RF, Milwaukee Brewers

7. Alec Bohm, 3B, Philadelphia Phillies

8. Teoscar Hernández, CF, Los Angeles Dodgers

9. Jurickson Profar, LF, San Diego Padres

Harper, Turner and Bohm, three of the Phillies’ major league-leading eight All-Star representatives, including their pitching, have been key to their major league-leading 62-34 record.

Yelich, who leads the league with a .326 average and .412 on-base percentage, and Contreras will make their third and second All-Star appearances, respectively.

Ohtani has a great chance to win the league’s MVP as a designated hitter and would be the first in either league to do so, as he leads the league with a 1.036 OPS and 5.4 WAR.

In 2024, Profar has finally shown why he was the No. 1 overall MLB prospect in 2013, Marte, now a two-time All-Star, is second in the league behind Ohtani with 4.9 WAR, and Hernández will start in place of the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr., who is dealing with a stress reaction in his right leg.

First baseman Freddie Freeman and catcher Will Smith of the Dodgers, Atlanta Braves designated hitter Marcell Ozuna and shortstop Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds are other NL All-Star position players of note.

Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts is another NL All-Star who will be inactive, recovering from a fractured left hand.

Starting pitcher: Paul Skenes, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates

The first overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, Skenes, who has an argument for the game’s best pitcher with two no-hit outings over his first 11 career starts, will become the first rookie pitcher to start the All-Star Game since Hideo Nomo did it for the Dodgers in 1995.

Other NL All-Star pitchers include the Braves’ Reynaldo López, the Chicago Cubs’ Shota Imanaga, the San Francisco Giants’ Logan Webb and the Padres’ Robert Suarez.

The Phillies’ Zack Wheeler and Ranger Suárez, the Dodgers’ Tyler Glasnow and the Braves’ Chris Sale are among the NL All-Star pitchers who will not play.

Manager: Torey Lovullo, Arizona Diamondbacks

Lovullo brought the Diamondbacks to their second NL pennant in 2023, and he has them within a game of a playoff spot after a 10-5 finish to the first half of 2024, bringing them to 49-48 and tied for second in the NL West.

The 2024 MLB All-Star Game will air on FOX and stream on FoxSports.com and the Fox Sports app.

Owen Klein is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ojk5092@psu.edu.