Baltimore Orioles infielder Joins AL All-Star Roster as Rafael Devers’ Replacement
After initially being left off the American League roster, Jordan Westburg is headed to the MLB All-Star Game as a replacement. MLB announced Tuesday that the Baltimore Orioles infielder would take the spot of Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers, who opted to skip the Midsummer Classic next Tuesday to rest a nagging left shoulder injury.
“I understood it,” Westburg said Tuesday of not making the original roster before MLB’s announcement. “There’s a lot of good players in this league and so just to be in those conversations, I was very honored and felt blessed. It’s disappointing, I certainly don’t know how many times I’m going to get that opportunity in my career but, at the end of the day, I’m not going to live and die by that decision.”
Westburg, 25, was a finalist for the AL’s starting third base spot in the fan voting stage of the All-Star selection process, finishing second to the Cleveland Guardians’ José Ramírez. His case was a deserving one: Westburg ranks third among AL third basemen in FanGraphs’ wins above replacement metric (2.8) behind only Devers (3.3) and Ramírez (2.9). Among second basemen – a position where Westburg has made over 33% of his starts – Westburg is tied with the Houston Astros’ Jose Altuve for the AL lead.
At the plate, Westburg has slashed .283/.330/.517 with 15 home runs and 50 RBIs in what has been a breakout season for the 2020 first-round draft pick. The Orioles gave Westburg a chance to crack their everyday lineup to begin the season after he impressed as a midseason call-up in 2023, and he has rewarded his organization’s confidence by turning in an All-Star season.
“He just does everything right,” manager Brandon Hyde said. “He’s just very, very professional and a really, really good player and so I’m so fortunate to have the opportunity to manage him as well as some other guys in there.”
Westburg will now join teammates Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, and Corbin Burnes in Arlington, Texas, next week for the All-Star festivities, giving the team four representatives for the second consecutive year. Last season, Rutschman, outfielder Austin Hays, and relief pitchers Félix Bautista and Yennier Cano earned All-Star nods for Baltimore on its way to an AL East title.
With Henderson, Rutschman, and now Westburg – who homered in his first at-bat Tuesday night against the Chicago Cubs – the Orioles are the first team to have three All-Star position players who are in their third career season or earlier, according to MLB. Atop the division once again, the Orioles are tied with the Kansas City Royals for the fifth most All-Stars in baseball. The Philadelphia Phillies lead the way with seven.
