Cincinnati Reds pitcher Andrew Abbott still has hope for All-Star Game call.
Andrew Abbott said it’s “not frustrating,” and he won’t call it a “snub.”
But the Cincinnati Reds’ high-performing left-hander admits to thinking he deserved an All-Star selection and held out hope he might yet make it during the annual process of adding players to the rosters as replacements for injured All-Stars or for those ineligible to pitch (for example, a starter who pitches the Sunday before the All-Star Game).
“Those guys that got picked deserved it, by far,” Abbott said Monday, July 7, the day after All-Star reserves and pitchers were announced.
“I think I did enough to deserve it, but at the end of the day I don’t control it, so I don’t really put a lot on it,” he said. “You think about it in the moment when it’s announced. But that’s nothing to take away from those guys. I pitched really well, want to continue pitching well, and we’ll see what happens.”
Reds pitcher Andrew Abbott's MLB All-Star case
Abbott (7-1, 2.15 ERA) has pitched well enough in 15 starts to help put the Reds at the fringes of the wild-card playoff mix – and maybe well enough yet earn a first All-Star bid the way teammate Hunter Greene did a year ago.
Greene earned his selection two days after the Sunday selections were announced, as an injury replacement for Tyler Glasnow.
“I’m always prepared for that to happen. I’m in a good spot,” Abbott said. “Talking to (manager Terry Francona), I’m pitching in the middle of the week. I don’t have another appearance. That adds to my availability for it.
“I’ll just be ready if the call comes.”
Abbott’s final start before the All-Star break is scheduled for Wednesday at home against the Miami Marlins.
“I don't know where it falls on the pecking order but I do know if it gets to him, he would be able to pitch and I know he would like to,” Francona said, “so that's my hope.”
Andrew Abbott's value for Cincinnati Reds in 2025
Either way, Abbott’s value is clear to the Reds, who are 11-4 in his starts (35-40 when he doesn’t start). He’s 4-0 after a Reds loss this season.
That value has been especially conspicuous in the prolonged absence of Opening Day starter Hunter Greene, who just experienced a setback with balky groin injury he first suffered in early May.
If he eventually gets recognized with a selection this week, Abbott said, “It’d be great to represent my family, all the hard work I’ve done, personally, represent Cincinnati and the team and all the guys on the team that should have gotten votes and consideration themselves.
“We do have an All-Star,” he added, referring to shortstop Elly De La Cruz. “We’re going to rally behind him. It’s exciting still. Nothing bad comes out of it (either way). Just didn’t work out the first time. But there’s still a chance.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds pitcher Andrew Abbott still has hope for MLB All-Star Game
Category: Baseball
