Yankees: Gerrit Cole and Aroldis Chapman join Aaron Judge as All-Stars

You wouldn’t know it for the way they played over the weekend, but New York Yankees’ pitchers Gerrit Cole and Aroldis Chapman were selected as members of the American League roster for the All-Star game, which will be played at Coors Field, in Denver, on July 13.

But the season is longer than a weekend, and both Yankees hurlers have merits to be part of the Midsummer Classic. Their selections were announced on Sunday during the 2021 Google MLB All-Star Selection Show on ESPN.

The non-starters were chosen through a combination of fan voting and the Commissioner’s Office.

“It’s a tremendous honor,” Cole said. “I’m always humbled because it’s a player vote relative to the pitchers. That holds a special place for me and hopefully, we can get back to pitching to that type of level here soon.”

The Yankees are sending two hurlers to Colorado

The Yankees’ ace, who had his shortest start of the season on Sunday (he allowed four runs in 3.1 innings, with three walks and six strikeouts) receives his fourth All-Star selection, as he played in 2015, 2018, and 2019.  

This year, he is 8-4 with a 2.91 ERA in 17 starts, conceding 81 hits and 20 walks but striking out 135 hitters in 105 innings.

Chapman, meanwhile, is the Yankees’ closer, but is in the middle of a rough stretch that has inflated his ERA to 4.71.

This will be his seventh Midsummer Classic and the third with the Yankees.

“It’s one of those achievements that definitely go under the resume of your playing career,” Chapman said through an interpreter. “It’s one of those opportunities that I think every player wants the chance to be a part of at least once. To be selected means a lot.”

He was unscored upon in April, but the wheels fell off in June and July.

“The way I started the season and the performance those months gave me an idea that it could have been a possibility,” Chapman said. “It’s surprising and nice, given that the past couple of weeks have been tough for me. It’s great to hear it.”

Both pitchers join Aaron Judge, who will be a starter and is slashing .284/.381/.529 with 19 home runs and 43 RBIs in 76 games.