Josh Harrison named to NL All-Star Team
Major League Baseball announced today that Pittsburgh’s Andrew McCutchen, Josh Harrison and Tony Watson have been named to the National League team for this year’s All-Star Game in Minnesota. It marks the first time since 1990-1993 that the Pirates will be sending multiple representatives in four straight years to the Midsummer Classic.
This is the fourth straight year McCutchen has been named to the All-Star team. He is the first Pirates position player to be named to four consecutive All-Star teams since Bobby Bonilla from 1988-1991. The 27-year-old McCutchen is also the first Pirates outfielder to be named to the All-Star team in four consecutive years since Roberto Clemente was named to four straight from 1969-1972.
McCutchen led all National League outfielders with 4,519,440 votes and will become the first Pirates player to start an All-Star Game since Jason Bay in 2006 when the city of Pittsburgh hosted the game. McCutchen joins Clemente (1960-67 and 1969-72) and Ralph Kiner (1948-1952) as one of just three outfielders in Pirates history to represent the team in at least four consecutive All-Star Games.
Harrison, who was selected to the team by National League All-Star Manager Mike Matheny, is currently hitting .298 (67-for-225), 12 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 25 RBI and 33 runs scored in 72 games. The infielder/outfielder is the first utility player named to the N.L. team since Omar Infante while with Atlanta in 2010.
Watson ranks third among Major League relief pitchers with a 0.89 ERA. The 29-year-old Watson, who was also named to the team by Matheny, is the first Pirates left-handed reliever ever to be named to the All-Star team and one of 10 southpaws in club history to be named. Watson, who was selected by Pittsburgh in the ninth round of the 2007 First-Year Draft, has 103 strikeouts since the beginning of last year, which ranks fourth among National League left-handed relievers.
McCutchen, Harrison and Watson will be joined in Minnesota by Pirates Manager Clint Hurdle, who will serve as a coach for the National League, and Assistant Athletic Trainer Ben Potenziano.