Dillon Dingler, Kevin McGonigle to Represent Tigers at All-Star Game
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After dominating the All-Star Game last year, the Detroit Tigers had to take a step back.
Last year the Tigers were leading the AL Central Division by a wide margin. This year they trying to get relevant enough to not have to trade their two-time AL Cy Young winner, Tarik Skubal, at the deadline.
Major League Baseball announced the American League and national League teams on Saturday, including the elected starters, reserves and pitching staffs. MLB rewarded three of the Tigers’ best young players with a berth.
Tigers Heading to All-Star Game
Catcher Dillon Dingler didn’t make the cut in phase one voting of the All-Star game as the catcher lost out to the Athletics’ Shea Langeliers and Toronto’s Alejandro Kirk. Langeliers ended up with the starting nod. But MLB made it right by making Dingler a reserve and he’ll make his first All-Star Game appearance on July 14.
Dingler is the Tigers’ best all-around player with a slash of .269/.329/.531 with a team-leading 19 home runs and 59 RBI. He’s kept the Tigers afloat offensively as they worked through several injuries on the pitching staff, specifically in the rotation.
Dingler was part of the 2024 playoff team as a backup and emerged as a starter last season. This year he’s broken through to where all of baseball knows who he is and he could be one of the game’s best catchers for years to come.
The Tigers will also send rookie infielder Kevin McGonigle to the game. It will also be his first All-Star Game and the rookie is considered one of the leading candidates to win the AL rookie of the year award after making the jump from Double-A to the Majors look relatively easy.
Outfielder Riley Greene is heading to the All-Star Game for the third straight season.
Meanwhile, the Tigers were curious to see if Skubal would make the team or not. Earlier in the week, manager A.J. Hinch said that Skubal was leaning against pitching if he were selected. He had arthroscopic surgery in May to remove a loose body in his left elbow. He was 4-4 with a 3.15 ERA in 11 starts. In the end, the committee that selected the pitching staff opted not to select Skubal.
Last season’s game in Atlanta was a big one for the Tigers, who had one of the best records in the American League at the time and their All-Star game contingent reflected it. Three Tigers were elected starters — second baseman Gleyber Torres, along with outfielder Riley Greene and Javier Baez. Zach McKinstry was named a reserve, and Skubal was named the starting pitcher. Another starter, Casey Mize, also made the team.
In 2024 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, Skubal and Greene were selected. The American League started Baltimore pitcher Corbin Burnes over Skubal, who went on to win his first AL Cy Young in the offseason.
In 2023 in Seattle the Tigers’ only All-Star was pitcher Michael Lorenzen, who was traded at the deadline to the Philadelphia Phillies and promptly threw a no-hitter during their drive to the playoffs.
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Matthew Postins is an award-winning sports journalist who covers Major League Baseball for OnSI. He also covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.
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