PHILADELPHIA — Somebody had to represent the lowly White Sox in All-Star Games during the depths of the rebuild.
That’s no knock on Shane Smith, Garrett Crochet or Luis Robert Jr., who each had admirable enough showings to earn their way to Midsummer Classics in the Sox’ string of three consecutive triple-digit-loss seasons.
But with the team finally showing hints of sustainable competitiveness, nearly half of manager Will Venable’s regular position players are legitimately worthy of All-Star consideration.
After leaving Philadelphia with a series loss on Sunday, a few Sox players could make their way back to Citizens Bank Park for the July 14 spectacle, which would mark the first time the Sox have sent multiple All-Stars since Tim Anderson and Liam Hendriks earned nods in 2022.
“We’ve got a number of guys who I hope are in those conversations and I hope are getting the attention that they deserve,” manager Will Venable said, pointing to his squad’s top tier of talent that has spoken for itself.
Look no farther than injured rookie sensation Munetaka Murakami, whose strained hamstring is expected to heal up sometime around the All-Star Game. His 20 home runs were still good for second in the American League behind Yordan Alvarez after a week on the shelf.
Murakami’s regular moonshots have stolen some of the spotlight from his teammate across the diamond, Miguel Vargas, whose 15 dingers lead all MLB third basemen, and whose .242/.370/.489 breakout otherwise would be the story of the season.
Vargas is vying to become the first Sox All-Star at third since Joe Crede in 2008, and potentially the first Sox starter at the position since Jimmy Dykes in 1933.
The third “M” at the heart of the Sox’ batting order, Colson Montgomery, broke out of a funk in Philly with his 16th homer of the season, extending his lead among MLB shortstops.
Even more impressive has been the star turn for Davis Martin. His 2.61 ERA was fourth-best in the American League entering the week, and his eight wins were second-most.
Versatile, flame-throwing reliever Grant Taylor (1-0, 1.93 ERA) burnished his national profile further over the weekend, mowing down the Phillies with three straight K’s to seal Saturday’s victory. He’s fanned 50 in 32 ⅔ innings.
“He’s one of the best arms in baseball,” Sox pitching director Brian Bannister said. “One of the better arms I’ve ever worked with. He’s already put up over one WAR on the relief side [1.4 per FanGraphs as of Sunday]. He’s as productive as a lot of starting pitchers out there in his role. It just goes to show how dominant he is.”
And don’t sleep on second baseman Chase Meidroth, who’s bringing a 19-game on-base streak into Tuesday’s series opener against the Braves, with .735 OPS sitting third at his position across baseball.
But the biggest surprise inserting himself into the All-Star conversation is Tristan Peters, the Manitoba-born, one-time SIU Saluki and line-dancing Savannah Banana whom the Sox got for peanuts in the offseason. All he’s done is post an .813 OPS while playing a dazzling center field over 62 games that have left fans shaking their heads over the aches and disappointment of the Robert Era.
“I didn’t know much about him, to be honest,” Venable said of the 26-year-old rookie who clawed his way onto the roster in spring training. “He’s obviously been a really pleasant surprise, a guy that really works hard, puts himself in a good position to take good swings on good pitches, and obviously the defensive part of his game speaks for itself.
“It feels like he hits a double every single day,” Venable said of Peters, who hit four over the weekend and leads MLB center fielders with 15 on the year. “It’s really cool to see Tristan take advantage of an opportunity, and he’s been huge for us. He’s been amazing.”
All-Star voting is open online through June 25.
ON DECK
BRAVES AT SOX
Tuesday: Grant Holmes (4-2, 3.86 ERA) vs. Erick Fedde (1-5, 4.94), 6:40 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.
Wednesday: Chris Sale (8-4, 2.23) vs. TBA, 6:40 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.
Thursday: Martín Pérez (4-3, 3.02) vs. TBA, 6:40 p.m., CHSN, 1000-AM.