The rosters for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game were unveiled Sunday, providing the full list of players from each league who will be heading to Atlanta next week. As always, it’s a wonderful collection of first-timers and Midsummer Classic mainstays, a beautiful blend of the game’s best talents from across the league.
But let’s be real: There’s always one or two or 10 names notably absent from the All-Star rosters, and fans react even more strongly to those than they do the players who actually get invited. It’s one thing when deserving players are unable to break through and claim a starting spot, which are determined by fan voting, but the reserves and pitchers on the All-Star Game rosters are determined by a combination of ballots from major-league players and the discretion of the league office, with roughly 75% of the roster additions based on player ballots. So when players who have been thriving over the season’s first three months go uninvited, fan bases are quick to point it out.
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Of course, it’s impossible to make everyone happy. There are only so many roster spots, after all, especially when factoring in that every major-league team is guaranteed at least one All-Star representative. And some positions are more stacked than others, making it more difficult for standouts at shortstop or on the mound to qualify compared to, say, second base.
It’s also important to remember that some of this frustration will end up being temporary. In the week leading up to the game, injuries and rotation schedules will necessitate the addition of more All-Stars courtesy of the league office. Last year, 10 replacements were added after the initial roster release, three of whom — Willi Castro, Anthony Santander and Cristopher Sanchez — I had identified as some of the most egregious omissions. So it’s likely that some of the players mentioned below will ultimately receive an invite to Atlanta.
All that said: Let’s not get caught up in the details of why some of this outrage might be premature or overdramatic. Right now, it’s time to embrace and embellish these exclusions as heinous injustices against our great game.
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Ladies and gentlemen … Start. Your. Grievances. This is the 2025 MLB All-Snub Team.
C Carlos Narváez, Boston Red Sox
Narváez is one of three rookie backstops with a legitimate gripe after being left off the All-Star team, along with Atlanta’s Drake Baldwin and Miami’s Agustín Ramírez. With an edge in playing time over Baldwin and as a way better defender than Ramirez, Narváez gets the nod here. He ranks fourth in fWAR among big-league backstops, behind only the trio of catchers already named to the All-Star team in Cal Raleigh, Will Smith and Alejandro Kirk, and he has offensively outplayed (117 wRC+) the glove-first reputation with which he arrived in the majors. Amidst a chaotic and frustrating Red Sox season in so many respects, Narváez has been a rock-solid revelation at one of the most important positions.
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1B Michael Busch, Chicago Cubs
Even with two starters in the outfield and a fantastic first-time selection on the mound in Matthew Boyd, the Cubs have no shortage of snub candidates. Catcher Carson Kelly’s late-career breakout makes for a compelling case. Seiya Suzuki has been a run-producing force-of-nature. But of all the Cubs bats that deserve an All-Star invite, Busch stands out. Yes, first base in the NL is one of the more loaded positions, with multiple staples of the game crowding the roster in Freddie Freeman, Pete Alonso and Matt Olson. But Busch’s 162 wRC+ clears all three of those sluggers’ marks and is fifth in MLB behind only Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh, Will Smith and Shohei Ohtani. Busch has been everything the Cubs could’ve hoped for when they acquired him from the Dodgers, and he deserves to be one of the first additions to the NL team once replacements start being announced.
2B Jeff McNeil, New York Mets
An oblique strain cost McNeil the first month of the season, but he has done quite a good job playing catch-up since returning to the Mets’ lineup, authoring an impressive bounce-back campaign following two lackluster seasons that seemed to suggest his decline had started. Instead, McNeil looks rejuvenated in his age-33 season, combining his always-elite contact skills with a career-high walk rate and more power than we’ve seen from him in a while. He’s up to nine homers in 57 games after totaling just 12 long balls in 129 games last year.
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3B Zach McKinstry, Detroit Tigers
This position is loaded with near-misses, so with apologies to Junior Caminero, Isaac Paredes and Maikel Garcia, I’m going with a guy who plays more than just the hot corner. McKinstry is this year’s Willi Castro, a do-everything superutilityman who provides immense value to his manager with his versatility. Third base is the position McKinstry has appeared at most for the terrific Tigers this season, but he has also made cameos at second, shortstop, left field, and right field, a remarkable defensive résumé for a guy who also has an above-average bat (128 wRC+). Castro did receive an All-Star invite last season after appearing on my All-Snub team, and I’d love to see McKinstry — a 33rd-round pick! — follow the same path.
SS Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
There are also a few contenders here (CJ Abrams, J.P. Crawford, Geraldo Perdomo), but I have to shout out the guy who has collected more hits than any other National Leaguer and is playing the best defense we’ve seen from him in years. After a somewhat tumultuous start to his Phillies tenure, Turner has quietly reestablished himself as one of the game’s best at a premium position, and he deserves to be a fourth-time All-Star.
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OF Juan Soto, New York Mets
It feels patently absurd to have to defend the honor of a guy who has a $765 million contract and a 154 wRC+, but here we are. Soto has been on an absolute tear since his uncharacteristic swoon in May, but it appears his recent heater was too little, too late for his peers to vote him in or the league office to include him. I can understand Soto being held to a higher standard than everyone else to secure an All-Star invite, but come on; just because he hasn’t been a no-doubt MVP candidate doesn’t mean he doesn’t deserve to be celebrated as one of the game’s best, which he clearly still is.
OF Randy Arozarena, Seattle Mariners
Let’s be clear: Julio Rodríguez, with his outstanding defense in center field and impact on the basepaths, is still a very good baseball player, even if his offensive output has waned to a borderline stunning degree this year. But the notion that Rodríguez belongs on the All-Star team over his outfield mate Arozarena is a stretch to say the least. Arozarena might not have made quite the impact Seattle was hoping for when the team acquired him at last summer’s deadline, but his dynamic presence is clearly being felt in his first full year as a Mariner. Ever the showman, Arozarena launched his 14th homer of the season on Sunday, not long after he was left off the All-Star squad. It was his sixth in his past seven games and the lone run in Seattle’s 1-0 victory over Pittsburgh. This dude oozes star power and belongs in Atlanta.
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OF Jo Adell, Los Angeles Angels
It has been an arduous journey at the big-league level for Adell since he debuted at age 21 as a top prospect, but we are finally starting to see his offensive talent shine through with some consistency. His elite bat speed and thunderous raw power have been on display for a Halos team that loves to slug, and it’s great to see a player like Adell break through after so many seasons in which it seemed like it might never happen. He would also be an ideal contender to add to the Home Run Derby field. (Also: Sorry to Dodgers fans looking for some Andy Pages support. He’s deserving, too, but your team has enough All-Stars already!)
DH George Springer, Toronto Blue Jays
I was so certain Springer would be on the team that I was fully expecting to use this space to provide an argument in support of Addison Barger as a top-tier snub, as he’s enjoying a wonderfully entertaining sophomore breakout for the first-place Jays. Instead, Springer stands out as one of the more glaring All-Star omissions, a complete whiff on a remarkable season that has seen the veteran outfielder feature as one of the driving forces behind Toronto’s recent surge to the top of the AL East. Over the past two seasons, it seemed like the All-Star version of Springer was in the rearview, so it has been a treat to have that assumption proven so resoundingly incorrect this summer.
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SP Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
Last year, a relatively rocky first half cost Valdez the chance at his third consecutive trip to the All-Star Game (though he rallied to receive down-ballot AL Cy Young votes), but there’s no excuse for his exclusion this time around. For as marvelous as Hunter Brown has been, Valdez remains the requisite rock atop the Astros rotation, which has proven especially valuable in the wake of all the injuries endured by other members of the pitching staff. Valdez is putting himself in excellent position to be the top starting pitcher on the free-agent market this winter.
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SP Ranger Suárez, Philadelphia Phillies
There’s a case to be made for all three of Philadelphia’s stellar southpaws — Suárez, Cristopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo — but Suárez has grabbed my attention the most since his return to the rotation in May after a back injury derailed the start of his season. He got rocked in his first outing (7 ER in 3 ⅔ IP), but in 11 starts since then, he has been practically untouchable, posting a 1.23 ERA in 73 ⅓ innings. His overall workload is less than some other candidates, but he has unquestionably been one of the league’s best pitchers when on the mound. Like Valdez, he could cash in big-time in free agency.
SP Kodai Senga, New York Mets
Injuries have continued to haunt Senga, limiting his overall workload to below the qualifying threshold, but he has been excellent for the Mets when he has taken the mound, and he still boasts the lowest ERA among starters with at least 70 innings pitched (1.47). His ghost fork remains one of the most devastating individual offerings in the sport, and his elite run prevention has served as a welcome reminder that his tremendous rookie season in 2023 was far from a fluke.
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SP Nathan Eovaldi, Texas Rangers
Another arm that would probably be a slam-dunk if not for a few missed starts due to injury, Eovaldi has been as effective as ever in his age-35 season. While he’s still throwing reasonably hard, Eovaldi’s fastball usage has dropped gradually over the past few years, and he’s now attacking with an unusually balanced four-pitch mix headlined by his dazzling splitter and bat-shattering cutter. He’s a joy to watch carving up big-league bats in his 14th major-league season.
SP Carlos Rodón, New York Yankees
This is a near toss-up between Rodón and Reds lefty Andrew Abbott. But Rodón snags the last spot in the All-Snub rotation thanks to his admirable consistency all season in the Yankees’ rotation, compiling more innings than all but three other American League starters (Garrett Crochet, Valdez and Fried) and more strikeouts than all but two (Crochet and Tarik Skubal). With so many injuries elsewhere on the New York pitching staff, Rodón’s dependability should not go overlooked.
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RP Jhoan Duran, Minnesota Twins
Let me first assure any Minnesota fan reading this that Joe Ryan is worthy of making my All-Snub team, just as he did a year ago, but for the sake of mixing it up, I’ll go with Duran. Despite the disappointing Twins not giving him a whole lot of save opportunities, Duran has continued to overwhelm opponents with one of the more higher-powered arsenals in the sport. Other than Seattle’s Andres Muñoz, who was selected as an All-Star, no pitcher is as elite as Duran at coaxing both ground balls and whiffs. The occasional bout of wildness aside, he remains on the short list of closers you’d want nailing down an important save.
RP Bryan Abreu, Houston Astros
Abreu was very good last season, but it was clearly a step down from the spectacularly high standard he set in 2022 and ‘23, when he looked like one of the best relievers in the sport, especially among non-closers. Now he’s back to dominating to a downright laughable degree, and he deserves to be rewarded, especially considering it would be his first All-Star appearance. Josh Hader should not be the only Astros reliever at the All-Star Game; heck, send Bennett Sousa and Steven Okert with Abreu while you’re at it!
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RP Phil Maton, St. Louis Cardinals
Let’s go way off the board with this final pick and give some love to a 32-year-old journeyman reliever. Previously something of a punchline as the lone major-league free-agent signing for the St. Louis Cardinals this past winter, Maton has emerged as an unlikely stopper for manager Oli Marmol, racking up whiffs at a career-best frequency and limiting hard contact as well as any bullpen arm in baseball. What makes it all the more incredible is that Maton hardly boasts the electric arsenal of a guy like Abreu or Duran. It’s the exact opposite: His two fastballs average about 90 mph, and he relies most heavily on a 76 mph curveball. It’s a bizarre mix, but it sure is working.
