Justin Steele, Marcus Stroman, Dansby Swanson named to the NL All-Star Team

The pitchers and position player reserves for the 2023 All-Star Game were announced by Major League Baseball today and the Cubs are well-represented with three selections. Right-handed pitcher Marcus Stroman, left-handed pitcher Justin Steele and shortstop Dansby Swanson were all named to the National League team. It will be the first-ever All-Star appearance for Steele and the second for Stroman and Swanson.

Steele, 27, is currently leading the majors in earned run average at 2.43. His nine wins rank third in the NL, just one behind league leaders Zac Gallen and Clayton Kershaw who both have ten. Steele was a fifth-round pick in 2014 out of George County High School in Mississippi. He made his major-league debut in 2021.

Stroman, 32, is currently fourth in ERA at 2.76 and is tied with Steele (and four other pitchers) for third in wins with nine. Stroman signed a free-agent contract with the Cubs before the 2022 season. He previously made the American League All-Star Team with Toronto in 2019.

Swanson, 29, is hitting .261/.348/.407 with nine home runs and 35 RBI. Swanson is also on-track for his second-straight Gold Glove at shortstop, as he leads the NL in defensive WAR according to Fangraphs and is second behind Padres second baseman Ha-Seong Kim according to Baseball-Reference. Swanson is in his first season with the Cubs after signing a seven-year free agent deal this past winter. He previously made the NL All-Star Team last year with the Braves.

The pitching staff and reserves for the All-Star Teams were selected by a ballot of players, managers and coaches as well as by Major League Baseball, which insures that all 30 teams get at least one representative at the game.

The All-Star Game will be played on Tuesday, July 11 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.