Former Maryland 2B Brandon Lowe named to MLB All-Star Game

Former Maryland infielder Brandon Lowe is joining the American League All-Star roster as an injury replacement, making him the first Terp hitter to attend the All-Star Game since 1947.

Lowe, now a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, is replacing Tommy La Stella as a reserve at second base. The latter violently fouled a pitch off his knee on Tuesday night, and he’s expected to go on the injured list.

While the circumstances aren’t necessarily how Lowe may have pictured his first All-Star nod, he is incredibly deserving of the bid nonetheless. The rookie has hit for a .276/.339/.523 slash line to go along with 16 home runs and 49 RBIs through 76 games. He has been an analytics darling thus far, posting a .360 wOBA, a 129 wRC+ and a 2.5 fWAR, all of which rank among the game’s best second basemen.

Lowe has helped propel the Rays to playoff contention thus far, as the team is currently 50-36 and holds the first Wild Card spot in the AL by three games. They were in first place in the AL East for the first few weeks of the regular season, and they now sit 5.5 games behind the New York Yankees through the midway point of the year.

The MLB All-Star festivities begin on July 5, with the actual game taking place Tuesday night. First pitch is scheduled for around 7:30 p.m. ET and the game can be watched on FOX. DJ LeMahieu of the Yankees is starting at second base, and Lowe can be expected to make an appearance later in the game.