The Special Joys of MLB All-Star Week and Looking Ahead to the Second Half

In this week’s Five-Tool Newsletter, we wrap up the festivities at Dodger Stadium and get ready for the remaining months of baseball.

Less than three hours before this year’s All-Star Game, more than a dozen reporters are huddled around Yankees ace Gerrit Cole at his locker in the visiting clubhouse at Dodger Stadium. Cole is in his typical form on days when he’s not pitching, relaxed and at ease talking baseball with the scribes.

No more than six feet away sits Cole’s catcher, Jose Trevino, who made his first All-Star team this season. Back in early April when the Rangers traded him to New York, nobody—not even Trevino—thought he would be here now, three-and-a-half months later. He is soaking it all in and having some fun with the game’s best players. At least for this season, he’s one of them.

A few lockers down from Trevino stands Shohei Ohtani and his interpreter and confidant, Ippei Mizuhara. Ohtani has his trademark grin stretched across his face, laughing with Mizuhara and any of the other players who say hello. He’s taking his sweet time putting on his uniform; he’s in no rush to start stretching.

AP Photo/Jae C. Hong

Trevino catches Ohtani’s eye and says to the two-way sensation, “Shohei, you gonna hit a home run tonight?”

Ohtani winks, but doesn’t say anything. Instead, he gets into his batting stance, exaggerates a high leg kick and pantomimes a homer swing. He giggles.

“If I do,” he says to Trevino in English, “You gotta do a backflip.” They both laugh.

Mizuhara then asks Trevino: “Can you do a backflip?” The catcher smiles and says he can’t.

This moment is one of the many small joys of All-Star Week. It’s an example of the hundreds of brief interactions that last only a few minutes at most but create a lasting impression on the people involved, including those who witness them.

I’m not sharing this story to make any grand—and rather clichéd—statement about how ballplayers are just like us, joking and cherishing their time with one another in a celebratory setting. I just thought this back-and-forth between two of the more beloved players in the game would make you smile. After all, isn’t that the whole point of the All-Star festivities? Isn’t that the whole point of baseball? It’s one of the main reasons for this newsletter, even when we’re dunking on Rob Manfred.

So, as we head into the first weekend of the second half, I’ll leave you with some of the best coverage from our entire baseball crew while we were out in L.A., other stories that look ahead to the remainder of the season, and, hopefully, a smile.

Have any questions for our team? Send a note to mlb@si.com.

1. THE OPENER

“There are two parts to every baseball altercation. One is everything that happens on the infield—where the scuffle begins and the dugouts quickly empty out. And the other is the journey through the outfield, long and traditionally futile, in which relievers dutifully cover hundreds of feet from the bullpens just to get a glimpse of the action.”

That's how Emma Baccellieri begins her hilarious and insightful story from this morning about the obligatory, yet often futile, trek for relievers during a baseball brawl.

You can read her entire piece below:

‘Everybody Needs Some Oxygen’: Relievers on the Run by Emma Baccellieri

2. ICYMI

Let’s run through some of our other great SI baseball stories from this week.

MLB Regular Season, Playoff and World Series Predictions 2.0 by SI MLB Staff
The Yankees and Dodgers are the overwhelming favorites to meet in the Fall Classic, but the Astros could have something to say about that. Our baseball writers make their picks as we enter the second half of the season.

The Top Stories to Follow Over MLB’s Final Months by Tom Verducci
You ready for a frantic finish to the MLB season? It’s going to be epic!

Julio Rodríguez Was the Breakout Star of MLB’s All-Star Week by Nick Selbe
The youngest player to be invited to MLB’s All-Star Game was also one of its best, as Seattle’s 21-year-old dynamo stole the show in Los Angeles.

Along for the Ride As a Cuban Baseball Prospect Defects to the U.S. by Greg Bishop
Billy Henderson has devoted his life to the strange and secretive practice of helping athletes—promising future pros—defect from Cuba. For his latest mission he strapped on a GoPro (and his guns) and took SI along for the ride.

Clayton Kershaw Finally Takes It All in at Dodger Stadium by Stephanie Apstein
The Dodgers pitcher started the All-Star Game at his home ballpark, and loved every minute of it.

Rob Manfred’s Latest Gaffe Is About More Than Just the Sound Bite by Emma Baccellieri
Minor league players don’t make a living wage, no matter what premise the commissioner rejects. Pressure is mounting for him to change that.

Brett R. Henry/Alamy Stock Photo

The Cult of the Dodger Dog by Emma Baccellieri
The most iconic hot dog in baseball is not an optional add-on to the Dodger Stadium experience. It is the experience.

All-Star Brothers Willson and William Contreras Are Living the Dream by Will Laws
They are the first siblings to earn the honors since Aaron and Bret Boone in 2003, and the first to start together since Roberto and Sandy Alomar Jr. did it 30 years ago.

Facing an Uncertain Future, Juan Soto Keeps Smiling by Stephanie Apstein
The 23-year-old is putting on a show, even as contract talks with the Nationals stall and trade rumors swirl around him.

MLB Players Have Some Ideas on How to Improve All-Star Week by Nick Selbe
All-Star week should have more player competitions than just the Home Run Derby. Here’s how some All-Stars would beef up the festivities.

The Nationals Have a Juan Soto Dilemma by Tom Verducci
This isn’t just about a generational talent betting on himself. It’s also about a franchise that is up for sale and the great unknowns that come with an ownership change.

The Nationals Need to Make the Most of Their Time With Juan Soto by Matt Martell
Washington reportedly offered the superstar a 15-year, $440 million extension, which he rejected. Here’s how the Nats could use some of that money to improve while they have him.

3. WORTH NOTING from Matt Martell

Surprisingly, the Phillies had the best rotation in all of baseball during the first half of the season, per FanGraphs’ WAR. The success of their starters in part is due to the dominance and durability of dual aces Aaron Nola (3.5 fWAR, 3.13 ERA, 126 ⅔ innings) and Zack Wheeler (3.0 fWAR, 2.89 ERA, 99 ⅔ IP), but don’t overlook the contributions from Kyle Gibson (1.2 fWAR, 4.35 ERA, 97 ⅓ IP), Zach Eflin (1.1 fWAR, 4.37 ERA, 68 IP) and Ranger Suárez (1.1 fWAR, 4.07 ERA, 84 IP). If the numbers from the latter three don’t suggest greatness, well, that’s correct. Gibson, Eflin and Suárez are not frontline starters, but they are the type of pitchers that can make the difference between teams that make the playoffs and those that fall short, especially when that team is Philadelphia, a club known for its cursed bullpen and dreadful defense. The more the team can get from its rotation, the better it will be.

4. W2W4 from Nick Selbe

With teams coming off the long break, the resetting of starting rotations makes for a stacked pitching weekend. Friday’s headliner is probably Max Scherzer vs. Yu Darvish in the series opener between the Mets and Padres at Citi Field. Scherzer has been dominant since making his return from the injured list, allowing just three runs with 31 strikeouts and just one walk in three outings.

Meanwhile, the Mariners will look to continue their 14-game winning streak as the Astros come to town. Saturday’s game will be the one to tune in for, with Justin Verlander squaring off against Logan Gilbert. Then on Sunday, the Guardians and White Sox will wrap up their weekend series with Shane Bieber facing All-Star snub Dylan Cease.

5. THE CLOSER from Emma Baccellieri

Let’s wrap up with something niche—my choice for the most interesting pick from the last day of the draft. Meet Jared Beck, pick No. 377, taken by the Orioles. The pitcher is 7 feet tall (which would make him the tallest in major league history if he gets to the bigs) and spent last summer with the famously fun Savannah Bananas. The 22-year-old played at Saint Leo University in Florida. (Go Lions.) A 7-foot-tall D-II lefty from the best of indy ball? Yes, please.

That’s all from us today. We’ll be back in your inbox next Friday. In the meantime, share this newsletter with your friends and family, and tell them to sign up at SI.com/newsletters. If you have any questions or comments, shoot us an email at mlb@si.com.