Former LSU players headed to baseball’s All-Star game
Published 6:00 pm Tuesday, July 10, 2018
LSU landed two former players in the upcoming Major League All-Star game with pitcher Aaron Nola of the Phillies on the National League squad and third baseman Alex Bregman of the World Champion Astros making the American League roster.
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The duo now gives LSU 12 Major League all-stars all-time, and it is the fourth straight year that at least one former LSU player has been chosen for the game.
The game will be held on July 17 at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.
Bregman, a native of Albuquerque, N.M., made the All-Star roster less than two years after his Major League debut in August of 2016 and just over three years after the Astros made him the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft.
This year Bregman, who was named the American League player of the month for June, is batting .284 with 29 doubles, 17 home runs, 57 RBI and 59 runs.
He played at LSU from 2013 through 2015 and helped lead the Tigers to two College World Series appearances. Bregman was a two-time first-team all-American at LSU, and he was named the recipient of the 2013 Brooks Wallace Award as the nation’s best shortstop.
He was finalist for the 2015 Golden Spikes Award, and he was named the 2013 National Freshman of the Year.
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Bregman started all 196 games of his LSU career at shortstop, batting .337 with 56 doubles, 10 triples, 21 homers, 148 RBI, 153 runs and 66 stolen bases.
Nola, the ace of the Philadelphia Phillies’ staff, is 11-2 this season with a 2.41 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 116 innings.
He was selected out of LSU by the Phillies in the first round (seventh overall) of the 2014 MLB Draft. He was the 2014 College Baseball Foundation National Pitcher of the Year and a Golden Spikes Award finalist.
During his LSU career (2012-14) he compiled a 30-6 record and a 2.09 ERA in 332 innings with 42 walks and 345 strikeouts. He was a two-time first-team All-American, and he is the only two-time winner of the SEC Pitcher of the Year award, receiving the honor in both 2013 and 2014.
The four-year streak of ex-Tigers in the all-star game includes Colorado Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu, who helped lead LSU to the 2009 College World Series title and was a National League All-Star in 2015 and in 2017.
Houston Astros reliever Will Harris, who played at LSU from 2003-06, was a member of the 2016 American League squad.
This year will be the first time LSU has had two All-Stars since 2009 when infielder Aaron Hill of the Toronto Blue Jays (AL) and former Brad Hawpe of the Colorado Rockies (NL) played in the 2009 game in St. Louis.
LSU’s MLB All-Stars
• Connie Ryan, 2B, Boston Braves (NL) — 1944.
• Alvin Dark, SS, New York Giants (NL) — 1951, 1952, 1954.
• Joe Bill Adcock, 1B, Milwaukee Braves (NL) — 1960.
• Albert Belle, OF, Cleveland Indians (AL) — 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996; Chicago White Sox (AL) — 1997.
• Paul Byrd, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies (NL)— 1999.
• Brian Wilson, RHP, San Francisco Giants (NL) — 2008, 2010, 2011.
• Brad Hawpe, OF, Colorado Rockies (NL) — 2009.
• Aaron Hill, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays (AL) — 2009.
• DJ LeMahieu, 2B, Colorado Rockies (NL)- 2015, 2017.
• Will Harris, RHP, Houston Astros (AL) – 2016.
• Aaron Nola, RHP, Philadelphia Phillies (NL) — 2018.
• Alex Bregman, 3B, Houston Astros (AL) – 2018.
Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Aaron Nola throws during the third inning of the team’s baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Wednesday, July 4, 2018, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Derik Hamilton)
Houston Astros’ Alex Bregman, left, scores during the third inning of the team’s baseball game against the Chicago White Sox, Friday, July 6, 2018, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)
