Brantley Named to MLB's 2018 AL All Star Team!

third time's the charm! hi, Brantley fans! our boy Michael has been named an All Star for the second year in a row and is going to Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., on July 17 as an American League outfield reserve!⭐⭐⭐👏👏👏

the happy news came tonight, on July 8 during ESPN's All Star Selection Show. Mookie Betts of the Boston Red Sox, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, and Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees are the starting outfielders for the American League team, which we basically already knew weeks ago. as soon as the very first AL All Star ballot updates came out, it was pretty apparent that those three would be starters.

Michael was in 4th place on the fan ballot for the first two updates before he fell to 5th on the third released update. then, on July 2, MLB Communications posted one last voting update and Michael remained in 5th place. though he'd gained 299,302 votes since June 26, he was 48,285 votes behind George Springer of the Houston Astros and 927,972 votes behind 3rd starter Judge. Betts held a whooping 2,025,730-vote lead on Michael, who was only ahead of 6th place Andrew Benintendi of the Red Sox by 22,241 votes. Brant was never really in the running to start, sadly.

thankfully, Michael was selected by his peers to be an AL All Star reserve player for the third time in his career! he's the only Indians outfielder to

Vote Brantley for MLB's 2018 All Star Game!

hello, Michael Brantley fans! get ready to input those captcha codes because it's time to once again vote for your 2018 MLB All Stars!⭐ the location for this year's game is Washington, D.C.!

photo courtesy of mlb.com

Michael has been an All Star twice now in his career. he was initially chosen to be an OF reserve for the American League team in 2014, marking his very first Midsummer Classic experience. Michael was also selected to the ASG a second time by his peers as an AL outfield reserve player last season. this is Michael's walk-year, meaning he will be a free agent at the end of 2018 and it's presumed that he won't be returning to the Tribe. so

Brantley Named to MLB's 2017 AL All Star Team!

for the second time in his career, Michael Brantley is an All Star!👏👏 that's right, Michael has been named as an American League outfield reserve and is headed to Marlins Park in Miami, Florida, for the 88th annual All Star Game on July 11, 2017!

photo courtesy of @Indians on twitter

tonight, on July 2, this year's Midsummer Classic rosters were unveiled in an Esurance All Star Selection Show on ESPN at 7 pm ET. the American League OF reveal was first and i knew better than to expect to see Michael in the top three. the starting outfielders include Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, and George Springer of the Houston Astros. Trout is still on the disabled list due to a torn UCL in his left thumb that he had surgery for at the end of May. originally, no one thought he had a chance to be ready to play in this game, but evidently,

Brantley's First Career Two-Assist Game

for the first time in his career, Michael Brantley threw out two baserunners in one game. the feat occurred on June 10, 2017, in the contest versus the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field. the last Indians player to acquire two outfield assists in the same game was Rajai Davis, and he did it almost exactly one year ago, on June 9, 2016, as the left fielder at Safeco Field in Seattle against the Mariners.

Michael's triumph began with the Indians already down, 4-0, in the top of the 2nd inning. Jose Abreu came to the plate to face Josh Tomlin with 2 outs and Melky Cabrera at 1st base. after a 1-1 count, Abreu sent a line drive double into left field. Michael retrieved the ball out of the corner, quickly spun around, and threw a laser to the cutoff man, shortstop Francisco Lindor. because Lindor knew Cabrera was on his way home, he made a relay throw to catcher Yan Gomes, who applied the tag on Cabrera to end the top half of the inning and also give Michael what would be his

Vote Brantley for MLB's 2017 All Star Game!

calling all Michael Brantley fans! i hope you're ready to get your vote on because it's now officially time to start picking the 2017 MLB All Stars!

photo courtesy of mlb.com

Michael's first, last, and only appearance so far in an MLB All Star Game occurred in 2014 when he was selected to the American League team as a reserve player. he was not chosen to be part of the 2015 contest, and of course we all know that the 2016 ASG ended up being out of the question for him. (though i did push hard for fans to vote for Michael prior to his shoulder setback!) but with his injury issues finally out of the way, we need to get Dr. Smooth on the squad representing the Cleveland Indians this year.

after his first month of the regular season, Michael is currently batting

Brantley Received Votes But Not Named To Sporting News' 2015 AL All Star Team

it's time for all the annual baseball lists and awards to start being unveiled, and today, on October 28, Sporting News announced who made its 2015 American League All Star Team. unlike last year, Michael Brantley was not selected to the team, although he did receive votes.

the Sporting News AL All Star team was picked by a panel of 22 American League, aka Junior Circuit, executives (general managers and assistant general managers). the decisions for this year's 90th anniversary team were made before the playoffs began.

the 3 outfielders chosen for this honor were Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays, and Lorenzo Cain of the Kansas City Royals. the first two players make sense. those were obvious choices. but Cain? he most likely got picked because

Brantley Not Selected For MLB's 2015 All Star Game

i was so excited last year when Michael made the AL All Star team for the first time in his career. unfortunately this season, i will not be repeating that joyous feeling. the All Star reserves were announced today and Michael Brantley is not one of them.

this year's Midsummer Classic starters were revealed on July 5 in the 2015 All Star Starters Selection Show on ESPN. as expected, Michael was not one of the three starting American League outfielders. those honors went to Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels, and Lorenzo Cain & Alex Gordon* of the Kansas City Royals. the final AL voting results showed that Michael finished 9th out of 15 outfielders.

then on July 6 in ESPN's All Star Selection Show, the All Star reserves, pitchers, and final vote candidates were disclosed.

Brantley Named To Sporting News' 2014 American League All Star Team!

today, on October 22, Michael Brantley achieved yet another new career first when he was named to the Sporting News' 2014 American League All Star Team!

photo courtesy of SN's website

the Sporting News AL All Star team is picked by a panel of 20 American League, aka Junior Circuit, general managers and assistant general managers. the decisions for this year's teams were made in late September. SN has been selecting All Star teams since the 1920s.

Michael is the first Cleveland Indian chosen for this honor since 2011, when shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera was selected. in addition, Michael is the first Indians outfielder named to SN's team since Grady Sizemore made it in 2008. Michael also joins starting pitcher Cliff Lee (2008), starter C.C. Sabathia (2007), right fielder Juan Gonzalez (2001), and 1st baseman Jim Thome (2001) as the only other Tribe players to be part of a Sporting News AL All Star team since 2001.

the rest of the AL team this year includes the following players: White Sox 1st baseman Jose Abreu, Astros 2nd baseman Jose Altuve, Angels shortstop Erick Aybar, Rangers 3rd baseman Adrian Beltre, Angels outfielder Mike Trout, Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista, Tigers designated hitter Victor Martinez, Royals catcher Salvador Perez, Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez, and Yankees relief pitcher Dellin Betances.

congratulations, Michael, on this postseason accolade!

Goodbye Nasty Masty

so news broke a little while ago that the Indians traded Justin Masterson to the St. Louis Cardinals and got prospect OF James Ramsey in return. this was a good move by the Indians. Masterson was not going to get re-signed with the Tribe after this season and at least now we got something in return for him. and this Ramsey guy has gotten some good reviews and high praise by baseball media. with the lack of OF depth in our farm system, this is a welcome addition. Ramsey will go to the Columbus Clippers and then if another one of our OFs gets hurt, he could get a call up to the Tribe.

but back to Masty. when Mickey Callaway lead Masterson into an office with the blinds closed and Terry Francona, Chris Antonetti, and Mark Shapiro waiting for him, he knew what was coming. "i said, 'uh oh. either i'm going to get beat, or i'm getting traded somewhere,'" Masterson said. "i was surprised it took place, but i understand and see it. it's bittersweet. i'm forever grateful for all that they've given me the chance to do within my career. i'm sad to leave the fellas and the fight that we're making here in Cleveland, but excited to get to St. Louis and be a part of what they have going on there."

i'm happy with this move, but it's sad at the same time. Masterson did not pitch well this year. we lost a lot of games in the beginning of the season thanks to his non-quality starts. i felt like something was wrong with him for a few months before it finally came out that he had been experiencing a knee problem since the 2nd game of the season. when the team put him on the DL and he did his rehabbing in Columbus, he still wasn't pitching well. despite the fact that he's shown in the past that he can pitch like an ace, i just didn't believe that he would turn things around and pitch well enough for us in the final 2 months of the season. so i don't view this as a loss to the team whatsoever. but it is a loss of a nice human being. he was such a polite person, always smiling no matter the situation. he was very positive, almost to a fault.

Masterson was the best Indians player when it came to fan interaction. he always signed autographs for fans. and he didn't just sign for a few people. he'd sign for every single person who wanted an autograph, no matter how many people were there. he'd go all the way down the fence in the players parking lot and sign, then he'd take more time and pose for photos. he'd go all down the 3rd baseline and sign for everyone who had something for him to sign. he was a great man. i've gotten his autograph several times while he was here and i'm happy that i did.

Nasty Masty was part of a lot of good times for the Tribe and he did do a lot of positive things in the past. so i'm sorry to see Justin go in that regard. but he hasn't been Nasty Masty in a while. he was too inconsistent for the team to keep putting out on the mound every 5 games. and that is unfortunate because i know a lot of fans really wanted him to perform better, but it just didn't happen. so thank you Justin for the memories. and i wish nothing but the best for him, his wife Meryl (the team's DEFINITELY gonna miss her free cookies lol), his daughter Eden Joy, and his baby twins, Nadia and Cruz. good luck in St. Louis!

one thing that Indians fans need to realize is that this trade is not the Indians giving up on the season or being "sellers." all Justin did was hurt the team this season to be frank. and with the way Tito was loyal to him, that didn't help either. so getting a team to trade something to us now instead of just letting him walk at the end of the season was the way to go. losing Masterson does not put our playoff hopes this year to an end. and honestly, i think the Indians would be wise to do the same thing with Asdrubal Cabrera, if any team can offer us anything of use. dealing Masterson and Cabrera now, at this point in time, as odd as it sounds, does not label the team as sellers. this isn't even close to a fire-sale. remember that. this season is far from over, and dropping the dead weight now does no further harm.

Brantley's 1st All Star Game Experience & ASG #s

Michael Brantley was part of the 85th annual All Star game on July 15, 2014 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. it was his first big league All Star experience. and i've got all the deets.

Michael did a lot of press on Monday, July 14. again, he said this is something he's dreamt about as a kid and feels blessed and honored to be a part of it.

photo from @Indians twitter account

before the Home Run Derby later that night, he did a preshow interview.

screenshots cropped from a video on Indians.com

in his interview, he once again said that this is an experience he'll never forget. he's happy and feels honored to be part of Derek Jeter's final All Star game. since he's not at the game with any other current Indians players, he's been talking with former Indian Scott Kazmir. he mentioned how his role on the team has changed in that he's batting 3rd now and has more opportunities to drive in guys. he worked hard in the offseason and takes advantage of good pitches. he worked hard with his dad in the offseason and it's paying off.

he gives a lot of credit to his father, saying he is the biggest influence on his career. "he's here to have this with me, this experience. without him, i don't know if i could be here right now at this level. he taught me a lot of what i know. i still use him for information today."

Michael came into the All Star break batting .322. he's put up some incredible numbers and career highs in this 1st half of the season. "i'm getting older and getting smarter. the game of baseball is changing. i'm making the changes at the right time. every day i have a good game plan. the pitchers, i've faced more than one time and i'm using that to my advantage."


on Tuesday, July 15, before the All Star game, Michael and his family took part in the pregame All Stars parade.

photo from @SliderTheMascot's twitter

"i'm just having fun, enjoying it," said Michael. "my mom, my father, my wife, my kids, my sister, and my in-laws are all here. i think when you go through an experience like this, the people that helped you get here should be here to enjoy it, too."

what does he hope to take away from being on the All Star squad? "to make sure i soak it all in. that was my only expectation. make sure i enjoy this experience, keep my eyes open, my mouth shut, and just soak it all in."

but that's not the only thing he wanted from this experience. "i want to have a couple memories to put up on the wall. a Derek Jeter autograph is up there on the list."

Michael also spoke highly of Derek Jeter. "he's been a great person in this game for so many years. the way he's played the game and handled himself every year, i think it's phenomenal. he always treated with me the utmost respect, even as a rookie. that meant the world to me."

later in the day, Michael took part in batting practice before the game.

photos from @Indians twitter

shortly after 7:30 pm, it was time for the players to be announced before the game started. i gotta admit, my eyes welled up when Michael was introduced as an American League All Star team player. that made me so happy and proud. he looked cool, calm, and collected. i'm not surprised that he didn't get much applause, this game did take place in Minnesota after all, but Michael's just gonna be Michael regardless of the haters hatin'.
 

screenshots cropped from a video on Indians.com

Michael had to wait almost 3 hours before finally getting into the All Star game. he came in the game as a defensive sub in the top of the 6th inning. he played center field behind Scott Kazmir for a few outs, just like the old days lol

then in the bottom of the 6th inning, Michael had his first career All Star game at bat in the 8th spot in the lineup. he faced Milwaukee Brewers' right-handed pitcher Francisco Rodriguez. with the American League up 5-3 and Adrian Beltre on 1st base and 2 outs in the inning, Michael grounded out to 2nd base after a 1-0 count to end the inning. he was robbed of a hit when LA Dodgers' 2nd baseman Dee Gordon made a diving stop and threw Michael out at 1st by a step.

photo from Getty images

screenshots cropped from a video on Indians.com

this was his only at bat of the game, but he did remain the center fielder until the game was over. and for the record, the American League beat the National League, 5-3, so the Indians will have home field advantage in the World Series this year! lol

after the game, Michael said, "this is the All Star game. the players are good at every position. it was a great game and i'm proud to be a part of it. Derek Jeter is a Hall of Famer. to be at his last All Star game is something you can't make up. it's something i'll tell my kids about and hopefully they'll tell their kids about."

"it was probably one of the best experiences i've had in a long time. this field's going to mean so much to me when i look back on my career. we had our first playoff berth here. i had my first All Star game here. it's just exciting."

Michael was also excited that his father was there to share this experience with him. "he taught me everything i know about baseball, from when i was born to now. i'll always lean on him. he's seen way more than i've seen. he taught way more players, and i just cherish the memories that we're going to share together throughout this baseball process."


now i am going to break down his All Star game #s and the 8th spot #s, as well as the center field #s and overall outfield #s.


2014 All Star Game batting average: .000

OBP: .000

SLG: .000

OPS: .000


Michael played in the 2014 All Star game on July 15, 2014. he came in as a defensive substitute in the top of the 6th inning and played 4 innings in center field in this 1 game.


Michael bat 8th.

Michael played center field. (defensive substitute: 4 innings)


Michael bat .000 (0-for-1) against right-handed pitchers in the All Star game, .000 (0-for-1) with runners on base in the All Star game, and .000 (0-for-1) with 2 outs in an inning in the All Star game.

Michael played errorless defense in center field for 4 innings, giving him a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. he recorded 1 putout in the game, the 1st out in the top of the 9th inning.


in the 2014 All Star game, Michael had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat. here is how he fared:

0 hits


1 left on base

1 putout

4 innings, 1 game

2014 All Star game batting average: .000 (0-1) (1 game)


now let's break down his numbers based on where he hit in the lineup.


when Michael bat 8th in the 2014 All Star game, he had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat in 1 game. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

0 hits


1 left on base

1 putout

4 innings, 1 game

2014 All Star game batting average in the 8th spot: .000 (0-1) (1 game)
2014 All Star game batting average in the 8th spot while playing center: .000 (0-1) (1 game) (4 innings)


now let's break down his numbers based on where he played in the outfield.


when Michael played center in the 2014 All Star game, he had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat in 1 game. breaking down the numbers are as follows:

0 hits


1 left on base

1 putout

4 innings, 1 game

2014 All Star game batting average while playing center: .000 (0-1) (1 game)



overall 2014 All Star game #s while playing center: 1 putout, 0 assists, 0 errors, 1.000 fielding percentage (4 innings, 1 game)

overall 2014 All Star game #s while playing the outfield: 1 putout, 0 assists, 0 errors, 1.000 fielding percentage (4 innings, 1 game)



now my game numbers and notes.

2014 All Star Game, July 15: 0-1. AVG: .000
(8th/CF/6-GF)



in the 2014 All Star game, Michael had a total of 1 plate appearance and 1 at bat in 1 game (4 innings). in total, he had 0 hits, 1 left on base, and 1 putout.



career All Star game batting average: .000 (0-1)

OBP: .000

SLG: .000

OPS: .000



i know Michael will never forget this experience, and neither will i. and hopefully he has many more All Star appearances coming in his future (so we can get those ASG numbers up! lol). he easily could have been a starter in this one, but, there's always next year... =P

Brantley Made the American League All Star Team!

for the first time in his career, Michael Brantley is an All Star! he is headed to Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota for the 85th annual All Star game on July 15, 2014!

  

 

Michael was chosen to be an American League reserve for this year's midsummer classic, and i am so happy for and proud of him! when he had that outstanding month of May, i started to feel like the All Star game would be a real possibility for him this year, and he played himself right into it. words really can't fully explain just how happy i am. the fact that i've supported him and been there from the beginning makes this extremely gratifying and extra amazing lol

after Michael learned about his being named to the All Star team, he said, "it's great. i don't know if you can put it in one sentence or what words to describe this. it's an awesome feeling. a lot of credit goes to my teammates. and yeah, it's a great feeling."

screenshot cropped from video on cleveland.com

Michael on being nominated by fellow players: "it means a lot to me. just how i play the game, i respect the game. just playing hard each and every day. they voted for me to make this appearance and my hats go off to them. i thank them. i thank my teammates, the Cleveland Indians for giving me this opportunity, my family, and everybody else that took the steps to get me here. it's a privilege, it's a blessing, it's an honor."

when asked if he thought the All Star game would be a possibility, he said, "i can't think about that stuff. that's a distraction to me. now that it's happened, i'm very fortunate, very lucky, and very excited about the opportunity."

he plans to pick the brains of the other players at the All Star game and enjoy every opportunity he has. "you never know when it's going to happen again. to have this happen now for me, words can't describe how happy i am inside and how blessed i am. i just want to make sure that i enjoy waking up early in the morning until i go back to sleep, and just keeping my eyes open to all the great experiences."

does it make it extra special knowing all his teammates voted for him? "no doubt about it. i can't thank them enough because they're the reason why i'm here. yeah i do some things on the field but without them this is not possible. so i gotta thank them the most, along with my family for the support. and it's a privilege, it really is."

the only person he told immediately after finding out he made the team was his wife. but he may be most excited to tell his father the happy news. "i look forward to calling my father, and i want to talk to my mother, and my sister, and just make sure i call them first so they can experience this with me. i'm excited to see his reaction. i can't wait to just talk to him and see what he has to say. we haven't talked about it at all. for me to have the opportunity to have a phone call and tell him, that's going to be something very special and something i'll never forget."

Terry Francona, part of this year's American League team coaching staff said, "i think it means a lot that the players voted for him. that shows the respect he has and it's growing throughout our league."

Cody Allen believes "every pitcher in the league probably doesn't like facing Brantley, so i'm sure he got a lot of votes from pitchers."

Corey Kluber said, "i think you ask every single person in our locker room, if there's one person they want to represent our team, it's Brantley. the way he plays, the teammate he is, he's a guy that's deserving as anybody in the league."


All Star Michael is currently the team leader with the following:

.321 batting average

.385 OBP

.511 SLG

.896 OPS

13 home runs (tied)

57 RBI

58 runs
6 hit by pitches (tied)

103 hits

34 extra base hits

164 total bases

83 games

he's a perfect 10-for-10 in stolen bases, also tops on the club. he's tied for 2nd with 20 doubles and 3rd with 29 walks. he has only 30 strikeouts among all the regular players.

Michael currently ranks 4th in batting average, 5th in OBP, 7th in hits, 9th in OPS, tied for 3rd in runs, and tied for 9th in RBI compared with the rest of the American League. among American League outfielders, Michael is 1st in batting average, 3rd in RBI, 3rd in OBP, 4th in SLG, 4th in OPS, 4th in hits, 5th in total bases, 6th in extra base hits, 6th in doubles, and 7th in home runs. in the race for the batting title, Michael ranks 8th. defensively, he's tied for the major league lead with 10 outfield assists.

he is on pace to set career highs in just about every important category there is in baseball. had he not been chosen for this year's ASG, i would have been sure that the fix was in. but Michael earned this honor and was rightfully rewarded.

he's been through a lot, and he's never complained. he always puts the team first. he's very respectful and plays the game the right way. combine all that with his stats, and Michael is the ultimate definition of an All Star.

so congratulations Michael on your first trip to the All Star game! first of many, i'm sure. have fun and enjoy your time there. next year though, you better be starting! =P


and in honor of this special occasion, i decided to look back through Michael's career, to see where he came from and how he got here. if you're interested in that, you can read my Brantley retrospective blog here.


disclaimer: thanks to Jordan Bastian for providing some of the Michael quotes i used here.