McKinstry picked as sub as Tigers tie Dodgers for most all-star picks

The Detroit Tigers have the best record in the majors. Now they are tied for having the most All-Stars, too. Zach McKinstry was picked Wednesday to replace Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña, who has been dealing with a rib injury. The infielder-outfielder will join Detroit second baseman Gleyber Torres and outfielders Javier Báez and Riley Greene — all AL starters — and staff ace Tarik Skubal, who also is among the candidates to start the All-Star Game on Tuesday in Atlanta. The five All-Stars for Detroit is tied for the most with the World Series champion Dodgers, who have DH Shohei Ohtani, catcher Will Smith and first baseman Freddie Freeman starting for the NL along with pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto is scheduled to start Sunday for Los Angeles, so Reds left-hander Andrew Abbott has been picked to replace him. McKinstry was among several replacements announced for the Midsummer Classic. Houston third baseman Isaac Paredes was chosen for the AL team in place of starting third baseman José Ramírez, Cleveland's seven-time All-Star who wants to spend the week rehabbing an Achilles injury; Twins right-hander Joe Ryan was selected as the replacement for Astros pitcher Hunter Brown; and Brewers closer Trevor Megill was added to the NL team in place of teammate Freddy Peralta, their scheduled starter for Sunday's game against Washington. Ramírez was hit by a pitch in a game against Toronto on June 26, though he said Wednesday that it was an Achilles injury that's been bothering him. Ramírez is hitting .301 with 17 home runs, 45 RBI and 24 stolen bases. "Everybody wants to go to the All-Star Game and especially for the support from the fans," Ramírez said. "But I feel the best thing for the team is to be able to be resting (those) days and be able to contribute to the team in the second half." The shuffling of replacements gives the Astros four All-Stars in Paredes, Peña, Brown and pitcher Josh Hader. The Brewers have two in Megill and Peralta. And the Twins have two with Ryan joining two-time All-Star outfielder Byron Buxton. "This was the goal in the offseason," said Megill, who struck out Freeman, Andy Pages and Tommy Edman in order in the 10th inning to secure the Brewers' 3-2 win over the Dodgers on Wednesday. "Just worked my butt off for it, and here we are." The four replacements make six total and 71 players between the two All-Star teams. The other sub announced was Rays third baseman Junior Caminero for Boston's Alex Bregman, who has been dealing with a strained right quadriceps. The Tigers have been one of the surprise stories of the first half of the season. After going 86-76 and tying for second in the AL Central last season, they are off to a 59-35 start even after a 7-3 loss to the Rays in their series finale Wednesday. The versatile McKinstry has been a big reason why. Along with playing every infield position besides catcher, and both corner outfield spots, McKinstry entered Wednesday hitting .283 with seven homers and 27 RBI. The 30-year-old needs just three more homers and nine RBI to set career highs. Peña, who is hitting a career-best .322 with 11 homers and 40 RBI in 82 games for Houston, has been out since June 28 with a fractured rib. He hoped to return by the All-Star break, but has not been cleared to resume baseball activity. Paredes, his teammate, is headed to his second straight All-Star Game in his first season in Houston. He is hitting a career-best .255 with 19 homers and 49 RBI for the Astros, who have a comfortable lead over Seattle in the AL West. "My main focus is to work hard for the team and be able to give the most I can for the team," Paredes said, "but as you can see now with the results that I'm getting... those results allow me to get to the All-Star game, so it feels good." The 29-year-old Ryan, whose name has surfaced in plenty of trade talk recently, was one of the biggest snubs when the initial All-Star Game rosters were announced. The right-hander is 8-4 with a career-best 2.76 ERA across 18 starts, and he's struck out 116 against just 21 walks over 104 1/3 innings for the Twins.