3 Blue Jays players with the best chance at making the All-Star Game

Shortstop Bo Bichette

Bo Bichette is as close to a "sure thing" as there is on the Blue Jays' roster. While he is still working to earn the face of the franchise title that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. currently holds, Bichette has been rock solid this year and is all but guaranteed to make the All-Star Game. While he may not be the starting shortstop, he's surely going to make it in a backup capacity at the very least.

Through 81 games this year, Bichette has been an offensive juggernaut for the Jays. He currently tops the charts in the AL for hits with 110 and also has an AL-leading .319 batting average heading into the day. He has 20 doubles and 14 home runs to go along with 48 runs batted in, an .852 OPS and an OPS+ of 136, which would be the highest of his career if the season ended today.

Up against some of the other top (qualified) shortstops in the American League, Bichette is currently first in home runs, runs batted in, batting average, OBP, SLG and wRC+.

We all know what Bichette is capable of doing with a bat in his hands. Time and time again, he comes through in the clutch and blends small-ball in with home runs perfectly. However, what only furthers his value this year in particular is his defense at shortstop, which finally seems to be turning a corner.

Last year, Bichette was one of the very worst defenders in all of baseball. His dWAR sat at -0.8, his Outs Above Average put him in the seventh percentile in the league, and he just did not appear to be comfortable playing this demanding position on a nightly basis. This year, his OAA is up a bit, as he now resides in the 18th percentile and his dWAR is up to 0.7, which is a fairly dramatic increase from the 2022 mark. This is without mentioning that he has seen his Defensive Runs Saved count go from -16 a year ago, to 2 today.

The improvements are noticeable across the board and now that he is able to pair a decent glove with an elite bat, he is surely going to make his way to the All-Star Game for the second time in his career.

First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

While Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s popularity is doing a lot to push him towards a third All-Star Game selection, he is absolutely backing this up on the field this season.

Guerrero continues to be a durable and dynamic player on the field for the Blue Jays. In 79 games, he has 18 doubles, 12 home runs, 51 runs batted in, a .281 batting average, .809 OPS and 126 OPS+. Fans are still waiting for him to return to his 2021 form when he nearly won the AL MVP, and there's reason to believe that this is still coming for him.

Up against some of the stiff competition at first base around the AL, Guerrero is currently tied for second in home runs, second in RBI, third in batting average, fifth in OBP and fourth in SLG. While these numbers weren't enough to earn him a starting spot in the All-Star Game, they should still be more than enough to get him in the show as a reserve.

One thing that has held Vladdy back this year is his performance at home, but he is finally beginning to turn things around, as he hit the first two homers of his season at Rogers Centre just this past weekend against the Oakland A's. After that series, he's up to a .256 average with 21 RBI and a 90 OPS+ at home, but his away numbers (.299 AVG, 144 OPS+) are much, much more impressive.

A resurgent Vlad would go a long way to helping the Jays continue their path to the top of the American League East. So far this season, he's been hitting the ball as hard as anyone in the league and his Baseball Savant page is a sea of red (as in red-hot), so it feels like it's only a matter of time before we suddenly see the big slugger breaking out at the plate.

Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman

No disrespect to Matt Chapman, who feels like someone who could make the game but as a backup, but Kevin Gausman is a lock to make the All-Star Game thanks to his unreal start to the season.

Gausman and his lethal splitter have been astounding for the Blue Jays so far this year, and he has officially done more than enough to be considered the staff ace. Through 17 outings in 2023, the 32-year-old is 7-4 with a 3.01 ERA, MLB-leading 2.54 FIP and a 136 ERA+. His 139 strikeouts lead all American League pitchers and he has brought his H/9 down considerably from last season, which is shocking given how dominant he was in 2022.

Gausman currently sits in the 93rd percentile in K% and 82nd in BB%, while also inducing swings and misses with the best of them. The aforementioned splitter of his has allowed just a .184 batting average this year and he has barely allowed any hard contact off of it. As a matter of fact, his 12.3 HC% is in the 82nd percentile amongst pitchers around the league, as "average" is all the way at 26%.

As is the case with Bichette and Guerrero, there's a shot that Gausman finds a way to start the All-Star Game for the American League. The fact that he leads the league in both FIP and SIERA suggests that he's done the best job in the league at doing everything he possibly can to keep the opposition off of the scoreboard, which one would think is the biggest indicator of being "worthy" to start the Midsummer Classic.

Shane McClanahan (Rays), Framber Valdez (Astros), Sonny Gray (Twins) or even Shohei Ohtani (Angels) are all other options that could earn the starting nod, but don't count Gausman out just yet.