Houston second baseman Jose Altuve, San Francisco Giants pitcher Carlos Rodon, St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado and Miami Marlins second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. won’t be playing in the All-Star Game.
Altuve, an eight-time All-Star who was selected as a starter in fan voting, was struck on the left knee leading off Thursday’s game against the Los Angeles Angels. He was kept out of the lineup Friday night.
MLB announced Saturday that Altuve is being replaced in the starting lineup by Cleveland’s Andres Gimenez, who is making his first appearance. Toronto’s Santiago Espinal will replace Altuve on the AL roster.
Dodgers pitcher Tyler Anderson, who is 10-1 with a 2.96 ERA in 17 games with 81 strikeouts, is taking the place of Rodon on the NL roster, LA said in a news release. It wasn’t immediately clear why Rodon isn’t playing in the All-Star Game; he was originally added to the roster on July 12 in place of Milwaukee closer Josh Hader.
Atlanta third baseman Austin Riley, who has 100 hits and a .913 OPS this season, will replace Arenado on the NL team.
Arenado, a seven-time All-Star, said Saturday that he’s had lower back soreness for three to four weeks, that MRIs found nothing and that he’ll take the All-Star break to rest.
“It’s been a problem lately It didn’t really make sense for me to go do that,” said Arenado, who lives less than an hour from Los Angeles. “Probably made more sense for me to go home, relax and just chill. Go home. Get treatment. Get some work done. I’ve got some trainers. I’ve got a physical therapist back home, ready to go.”
Altuve said of his knee on Saturday that he was “waiting to see how it responded today and I think we all agree that we’re making the best decision.” He also said “I don’t think we’re going to go” when asked if he was going to go to LA, adding “we’re going to do some treatment and get ready for the second half.”
Pittsburgh’s Jake Cronenworth will take the place of Chisholm, who has been on the injured list since June 29 with a right lower back strain.
Miami manager Don Mattingly said of Chisholm that “anybody that’s in the IL is in medical’s hands until they’re not.”
“I’m sure he’s disappointed he can’t play. He’s earned that right to play,” Mattingly said, adding that Chisholm is “getting better and hopefully he’ll have many more of these (opportunities.)”
The 23-year-old Gimenez, who came to Cleveland last year as part of the trade that sent shortstop Francisco Lindor to the New York Mets, is having a standout season. He’s batting .299 with 10 homers and 43 RBIs in 78 games while playing solid defense. He’s also been clutch, batting .384 with runners in scoring position.
