Which current Texas Rangers could play in the 2024 All-Star Game?

Corey Seager

Seager’s All-Star case is obvious. He is a three-time All-Star with a career WAR of 25.3 through his first eight seasons. With all that Seager has already accomplished in his career, it’s hard to believe he is still only 28 years old. There is reason to believe that Seager could continue to improve as he enters his prime. Seager will be in the third year of a 10-year, $325 million contract in 2024 and should be a key contributor for the Rangers for years to come barring injury.

Marcus Semien

Surprisingly, Semien has only been an All-Star one other time through his first ten seasons in the majors. He does have two top-three MVP finishes on his resume and a career WAR of 34.8. He was not an All-Star in 2021, mainly because of a slow start to the season. However he finished strong and ended the season tied for 14th in batting WAR with Freddy Freeman. Look for Semien to add multiple All-Star appearances to his career resume during his time in Texas.

Adolis Garcia

The case: Garcia has an All-Star appearance already in his career. He made the team as a reserve during the 2021 season. He was even better in 2022 and has still only played in 329 career games. He also has a knack for coming through in the clutch and tends to shine brightest during the biggest moments. If El Bombs continues to perform at this level, he will be hard to ignore during All-Star voting.

Jonah Heim

The Case: Heim wasn’t an All-Star in 2022, but he had a legitimate case. Ultimately, voters chose former Ranger Jose Trevino for the back-up catcher spot instead. Heim outperformed Trevino offensively during the first half with a slash line of .262/.313/.467 compared to Trevino’s .252/.299/.415. Trevino made a stronger impact on the defensive side (specifically with his pitch framing) and was awarded the Platinum Glove after the 2022 season. As good as Trevino’s season was, no American League catcher has appeared in consecutive All-Star games since Salvador Perez in 2016 and 2017. Should we root for Heim to get snubbed again in 2023 so he can make the team in 2024?

Nathaniel Lowe

The Case: Lowe recently won his first Silver Slugger and was one of the best hitters in the entire league through the last four months of the season. It remains to be seen whether his 2022 performance was a splash in the pan or a true sign of what’s to come. If Lowe begins the 2023 season in the same way that he finished 2022, he’ll be a near lock for a spot on the team.

Jon Gray

Jon Gray hasn’t appeared in an All Star game through the first eight years of his career, but he would have a good chance of putting together a strong case as long as he could stay healthy. Gray went on the 10-day IL twice during April last year. He struggled through five starts in May, but found his groove in June. Through 11 starts between June 1st and July 27th, Gray won seven games and posted an ERA of 2.65. He limited opposing hitters to a .204 average and had a strikeout-to-walk ratio of four to one. Perhaps Gray would have received All-Star consideration in 2022 if he had stayed healthy and put together a successful string of starts like this before the teams were finalized.

Josh Jung

The Case: Jung only has 98 big-league plate appearances and was limited through the 2022 season because of a shoulder injury. He was also was the Rangers number-one prospect in 2022 as well as a top 50 prospect in all of baseball. He slashed .321/.525/.846 through 106 at-bats at Round Rock before earning a big-league call-up on September 9th. Jung should play everyday at third base during the 2023 season and will be talked about as a potential Rookie of the Year candidate before the season. Perhaps he’s stated his claim among the top third basemen in the American League by the time the All-Star game comes to Arlington. Rangers fans certainly hope this is the case.

Brock Burke

Brock Burke was traded to the Rangers as a part of the Jurickson Profar trade prior to the 2019 season. He battled through multiple injury-plagued seasons before finding a home in the Rangers bullpen in 2022. In 82.1 innings spread out across 52 appearances, Burke allowed only 18 runs and struck out 90 hitters. By the end of the year, he was the Rangers’ most reliable option out of the bullpen along with fellow starter-turned-reliever Matt Moore. Moore is currently a free agent, but Burke isn’t arbitration eligible yet. There’s a chance he continues to improve as he further distances himself from Tommy John surgery and continues to acclimate to life in the bullpen.

Undoubtedly, one of these players will get hurt or underperform in 2024 and we’ll look back on these predictions and wonder what we were thinking at the time. But chances are also high that a prospect from the ranks of Owen White or Justin Foscue comes up, makes an instant impact, and hears their name mentioned in All-Star discussions. There’s also no telling what former All-Star may find their way onto the Texas Rangers over the course of the next two seasons.

This is an exciting time to be a Texas Rangers fan, and not only because the All-Star game is coming to town in a few years. Plenty of stars will be showing off their skills throughout the course of the next few seasons.