Braves ace Julio Teheran was named to his first National League All-Star team, but will likely be ineligible to pitch in the July 15 game at Minnesota because he’s scheduled to start Sunday’s last game before the All-Star break.
Any pitchers who start games Sunday (July 13) aren’t eligible to pitch in the All-Star game two days later. A few All-Star pitchers are expected to fall into that category, and will be replaced by other pitchers on the All-Star team.
It wouldn’t change the fact that Teheran (8-5, 2.29 ERA) would be an All-Star and still take part in all the festivities in Minneapolis with the rest of the All-Star including Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, closer Craig Kimbrel, and possibly outfielder Justin Upton, one of five candidates for the final All-Star spot to be determined by fan vote this week.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez said he and pitching coach Roger McDowell talked about a Plan B in which they would’ve shuffled the starting rotation after an off day last week. They would have arranged it so Teheran would pitch Saturday at Chicago instead of Sunday’s series finale, to possibly make him available to pitch an inning in the All-Star game.
But Gonzalez was only going to do that if he’d received a call last week from National League All-Star manager Mike Matheny or someone in the MLB office inquiring about the availability of Teheran for the game if he were named to the All-Star team.
Gonzalez, who’ll serve as a coach on Matheny’s All-Star coaching staff, didn’t get that call, and Teheran was added to the All-Star team Sunday as a substitute for Jeff Samardzija after Samardzija was traded from the Cubs to Oakland of the American League.
“If we would have adjusted I don’t know if it would’ve made a difference,” Gonzalez said. “We would have made it Saturday or Sunday. I don’t know if him pitching Saturday still might’ve made him eligible to pitch Tuesday (in the All-Star game) a couple of innings. That’s (cutting it) close.
“I think it worked out perfectly. He gets to pitch on Sunday, then I think he gets to be fresh the next time when we bring him around.”
