Projecting the 2024 MLB All-Star Game rosters using WAR
Hey now, who's an All-Star?
The 2024 MLB season has reached its halfway point with every team – except the New York Mets – having played at least 81 games in the 162-game season (the Mets play Game 81 later on Sunday). The "official" halfway point of the season is roughly two weeks away with the 2024 MLB All-Star Game, and fan voting for each league's starters is still open.
But what if MLB took the power out of fans' hands and named starting rosters based on one all-encompassing statistic? Here's a projection for each league's All-Star roster based on players' WAR at the midpoint of the 2024 season.
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WAR explained
According to baseball sabermetrics database FanGraphs, "WAR offers an estimate to answer the question, 'If this player got injured and their team had to replace them with a freely available minor leaguer or a AAAA player from their bench, how much value would the team be losing?'"
In other words, WAR is roughly how many wins a player is worth compared to a replacement-level player. The higher the number, the more impactful the player. WAR can be negative to account for players performing to the detriment of their teams' success.
There are two main resources for a player's WAR value that use two different formulas for their calculations: Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.
Here's how the 2024 MLB All-Star Game rosters would look for each league if MLB used WAR to select the teams.
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American League All-Star roster by WAR
FanGraphs WAR formula (fWAR)
Starting Pitcher: Tanner Houck, Boston Red Sox
Catcher: Adley Rutschman, Baltimore Orioles
First baseman: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays
Second baseman: José Altuve, Houston Astros
Third baseman: José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians
Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles
Outfielders: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees; Juan Soto, New York Yankees; Steven Kwan, Cleveland Guardians
Designated hitter: Yordan Álvarez, Houston Astros
Baseball Reference WAR formula (bWAR)
Starting Pitcher: Tyler Anderson, Los Angeles Angels
Catcher: Adley Rutschman, Baltimore Orioles
First baseman: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays
Second baseman: Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Toronto Blue Jays
Third baseman: Josh Smith, Texas Rangers
Shortstop: Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles
Outfielders: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees; Juan Soto, New York Yankees; Jarren Duran, Boston Red Sox
Designated hitter: Yordan Álvarez, Houston Astros
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National League All-Star roster by WAR
FanGraphs WAR formula (fWAR)
Starting Pitcher: Cristopher Sánchez, Philadelphia Phillies
Catcher: Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers
First baseman: Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
Second baseman: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks
Third baseman: Joey Ortiz, Milwaukee Brewers
Shortstop: Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati Reds
Outfielders: Jurickson Profar, San Diego Padres; Brandon Nimmo, New York Mets; Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres
Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers
Baseball Reference WAR formula (bWAR)
Starting Pitcher: Ranger Suárez, Philadelphia Phillies
Catcher: Patrick Bailey, San Francisco Giants
First baseman: Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
Second baseman: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks
Third baseman: Matt Chapman, San Francisco Giants
Shortstop: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers (injured)
Outfielders: Bryan Reynolds, Pittsburgh Pirates; Heliot Ramos, San Francisco Giants; Jurickson Profar, San Diego Padres
Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers
When is the MLB All-Star Game?
The 2024 MLB All-Star Game is Tuesday, July 16 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB All-Star roster projections by positional WAR leaders