Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Seranthony Domínguez Should be an All-Star
Relief pitchers are seldom invited to partake in Major League Baseball's All-Star festivities when late July rolls around. The Philadelphia Phillies' last reliever to represent them at the All-Star Game was side-winder Pat Neshek who, let's face it, was the lone sensible option given how bad that 2017 Phillies team was.
In fact, the only bullpen arms who are ever voted in by the fans are the high-profile closers of the world; your Josh Haders, your Edwin Díaz, and the like.
That being said, 2022 has brought with it a slew of relief pitchers who are shoving for their respective clubs, and the majority of them are not your typical lockdown, ninth-inning saviors.
Among those pitchers is Seranthony Domínguez, who has done more than enough to deserve consideration for an All-Star nod this year.
Not only has Domínguez evolved into the backbone of a troubled Phillies bullpen, but the righty has an incredible story to tell. He spent the last three years recovering from back-to-back Tommy John surgeries to get to this point, and he is not wasting his shot.
As things currently stand, Seranthony ranks as the sixth most valuable reliever in baseball by fWAR with 0.9. That's more than Hader, Díaz, Kenley Jansen... the list goes on.
The only pitchers he trails? Two of them are Michael King and Clay Holmes, who've both had remarkable seasons for a strong Yankees bullpen. The others are David Bednar, AJ Minter, and Ryan Helsley, all of whom have been spectacular for their given clubs. One could easily argue that these five pitchers also deserve All-Star appearances in their futures.
What Domínguez is doing is special. He's churning out the best season by a reliever the Phillies have seen in years. A 1.54 ERA, alongside an ERA+ of 265, and 30 strikeouts in 23.1 innings of work? All in his first year back from what could very well have been career-ending surgeries?
That sounds like the very definition of an All-Star.
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