Star search: Bryan Reynolds, Paul Skenes top Pirates’ hopeful candidates for All-Star Game

To say Bryan Reynolds is a man of few words is an understatement, but the Pittsburgh Pirates left fielder didn’t mince his when asked if he deserves a spot on the National League roster in the All-Star Game.

“I think I should be in it,” Reynolds, an All-Star starter in 2021, told TribLive before Friday’s game. “I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t think it. We’ll see.”

Reynolds backed up those words by going 4 for 5 with two home runs, including a grand slam, and matching his career best with six RBIs in the Pirates’ 14-2 win over the New York Mets at PNC Park.

Although Derek Shelton said before that game that Reynolds “should definitely be in the conversation” for the All-Star game, the Pirates manager was more emphatic after a performance he called “pretty impressive” by stating that he hoped the voting didn’t shut down yet.

While the Pirates didn’t have anyone voted to the starting lineup, they have a handful of hopeful candidates under consideration before the complete rosters are revealed at 5:30 p.m. Sunday on ESPN for the Midsummer Classic on July 16 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

To avoid potential conflicts of interest, All-Star reserves no longer are selected by the manager but rather as a group effort between the player ballot and the commissioner’s office. There will be eight pitchers chosen — five starters and three relievers — and one backup at each position.

The Pirates’ most obvious position player is Reynolds, who is batting .280/.344/.487 with 19 doubles, three triples, 16 home runs and 54 RBIs while playing in all 87 games. He boasted a .330 batting average and .992 OPS in June and had an MLB-best 25-game hitting streak.

“I believe that Reynolds should be starting the All-Star Game,” Pirates rookie right-hander Paul Skenes said after Reynolds’ monster game Friday night. “I don’t know who plays left in the NL, but it’s tough for me to think off the top of my head who’s better than he is.”

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington believes three starters are “deserving of consideration,” naming 2023 All-Star Mitch Keller and rookies Jared Jones and Paul Skenes.

Jones (5-6, 3.56 ERA) leads the Pirates with 98 strikeouts in 91 innings over 16 starts and is holding hitters to a .220 batting average but was placed on the 15-day injured list Friday with a right lat muscle strain.

Skenes, the 2023 No. 1 overall pick, is 5-0 with a 2.12 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 59 1/3 innings over 10 starts since making his major-league debut May 11.

“As long as he’s been here, he’s been one of the best in baseball,” Reynolds said, “and that’s what it’s supposed to be about.”

Only 22, Skenes has become one of baseball’s top attractions by topping 100 mph on the radar gun with regularity and showing off a five-pitch repertoire that features a splitter-sinker hybrid that is giving hitters fits. Skenes became the first pitcher in MLB history to record at least seven strikeouts in nine of his first 10 career starts.

“I think he’s going to be in the conversation because of the fact that what his record is and what his ERA is, and as we know the pitching is determined in a different way,” Shelton said. “There’s a lot of good starting pitching, and there’s a lot of good pitching in the National League. It’s going to be a challenge for whoever is deciding.”

Although Shelton advocated for rewarding the players having the best first half to be selected to the All-Star Game, he mentioned that it’s still an exhibition game that doesn’t have any bearing on the postseason. Cherington allowed that, as a showcase of the sport’s superstars for the entertainment of fans, Skenes could be an attractive addition.

“I’ll let others make that decision, but he’s pitching pretty well. He’s pitching at that level,” Cherington said. “I respect that the All-Star Game should be about fans and about celebrating the game. I’m all for whatever adds to that.”

Added Shelton: “There’s a different atmosphere in the ballpark when he pitches. And I think that’s really cool, and I think people have paid attention to it. And the fact that he was 1/1 and has got here in less than a year and the fact that he’s off to a good start.”

After striking out MVPs Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman when he pitched against the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 5, Skenes isn’t shy about wanting to face top American League hitters such as Aaron Judge and Juan Soto of the New York Yankees. Skenes hopes his resume is enough to warrant his first All-Star selection as a rookie.

“I’d like to think of myself as that guy,” Skenes said. “But I think it was (Elly) De La Cruz last year who came up a month or a month-and-a-half before the All-Star Game and didn’t make it. I don’t know what the precedent is there. I really would love to be there. It’s a cool event. I’ve grown up watching it and making time for it. It’s always been an event for my family to watch that game. To be in there would be pretty surreal, but I’m not going to lose any sleep over it if I’m not.”

If Skenes is selected, it could come at the expense of Pirates staff anchor Mitch Keller, who made his first All-Star appearance last year. Keller is 9-5 with a 3.48 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in 101 1/3 innings over 17 starts, including a complete game. Keller is riding a 48-game streak of pitching at least five innings but knows he’s not a lock to make it.

“I’m trying not to think about that,” Keller said. “I hope so, but, if not, that’s fine, too. It’s not really what I’m looking for, too. It’d be nice, yeah, but I just want to go out there and give us a chance to win every game, be in the playoffs. That’d be more meaningful to me than an All-Star Game. But, obviously, it’d be nice.”

The wild card is reliever Colin Holderman, who has emerged as one of baseball’s best setup men. The sinkerballer is 3-1 with a 1.71 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in 31 2/3 innings over 33 appearances, with 13 holds. He allowed only two earned runs in his first 26 2/3 innings of the season.

“It’s definitely tough being a non-closer reliever. You’ve got to do some special stuff. Hopefully, those numbers will speak for themselves. I’m going to take it day by day. If it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t, I’m going to take my three-day break and have a good second half. I’d love to be there, but I’ll let it happen.”