The first-place Mets have landed four players on the National League All-Star team, their most representatives since they also sent that many players in 2016.
MLB RBI leader Pete Alonso, closer Edwin Diaz, second baseman Jeff McNeil and outfielder Starling Marte were named Sunday as reserves to the NL squad for the July 19 All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium, with the possibility one or two others could be added later as injury replacements.
“It means a lot. It’s something that I really take pride in,” Alonso said after the Mets’ 2-0 loss to the Marlins. “I’m really happy that I was able to play my way into the game. Hard work pays off and I’m really happy I get to represent my team and the city of New York in LA.”
Alonso, the two-time defending champion in the Home Run Derby, still hasn’t confirmed whether he plans to participate again in the event the night before the Midsummer Classic.
“I never said I was gonna do the derby yet, but I’m excited for the All-Star Game. I’m really stoked,” Alonso said. “We have one of the best records in baseball and our team is super-talented. So we should have that many guys.”
McNeil, who didn’t accompany the Mets to Atlanta to start his paternity leave for the birth of his first child, began the day ranked third in the league in batting average (now .311) with four homers and 35 RBIs. He previously was named an All-Star in 2019 — when he finished with a .318 batting average and a .916 OPS — but McNeil slumped to a slash line of .251/.319/.360 (.679 OPS) in an injury-plagued 2021 campaign.
“Last year was a tough year for me, so just being able to go out and work hard in the offseason and to kind of have a bounce-back season and to be recognized for that is pretty special to me,” said McNeil, who hails from Nipomo, Calif. “It gives me a lot of confidence. It shows that I can be one of the best players in the big leagues and take that going forward and prepare every single day and doing well. It does give me a lot of confidence that I can play with the best.
“This is gonna be a pretty special week and a half. We’re having our first child in the next few days, and the baby’s first game might be the All-Star Game at the stadium I always went to growing up.”
Marte, who sat out Sunday’s game with a groin issue, also has posted a consistent first season with the Mets, batting .292 with nine homers and 40 RBIs for his second career All-Star nod (also in 2016 with the Pirates).
“It was an emotional moment, something me and my family had been speaking of for a couple of days,” Marte said through a translator. “I immediately changed my plans for the break.”
Diaz also was named an All-Star for the second time in his career, but his first in four seasons with the Mets following a 2018 trade from Seattle. He posted a 5.59 ERA with seven blown saves for the Mets in 2019, but he’s recorded 18 saves with a 1.78 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 35 ¹/₃ innings in 36 appearances this season.
“It means a lot because my Mets career didn’t start the way I wanted. But I’ve been able to get back on track and this year I made the All-Star team. I’m really happy,” Diaz said. “I think with this team, when I get into the game and get the big outs I prove to them that’s the guy the Mets traded for.
“I hope to face the three best hitters in the American League. Maybe I can face [Aaron] Judge. Who else made it? [Yordan]Alvarez, [Shohei] Ohtani? That would be awesome.”