Starling Marte, Jay Bruce, Drew Pomeranz Named All-Star Game Injury Replacements

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte, Cincinnati Reds outfielder Jay Bruce and San Diego Padres starting pitcher Drew Pomeranz were named to the National League All-Star roster as injury replacements, MLB announced Saturday.

Marte, Bruce and Pomeranz will replace the Chicago Cubs' Dexter Fowler and the New York Mets' Yoenis Cespedes and Noah Syndergaard.

Fowler is nursing a hamstring injury that sent him to the disabled list June 19, according to ESPN.com's Jesse Rogers. Cespedes left the Mets' game Friday evening with a right quad strain, and Syndergaard is dealing with what's being termed "arm fatigue," per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

DiComo also relayed an update regarding which Mets players will still attend the festivities:

Fowler was originally voted in as a starter after batting .290 with seven home runs, 28 RBI and a .398 on-base percentage prior to his stint on the DL.

Cespedes, who also comprised one-third of the NL's starting outfield, was tied for fifth in the league with 21 home runs entering Saturday. Furthermore, he's posted a batting average (.302), on-base percentage (.372) and slugging percentage (.583) that would rank as career bests.

According to MLB's official press release, Marcell Ozuna of the Miami Marlins and Carlos Gonzalez of the Colorado Rockies will start in place of Fowler and Cespedes.

Marte and Bruce will also be afforded opportunities to shine.

The Pirates outfielder is in the midst of his best year at the plate, having posted a .316 batting average, six home runs and 32 RBI in 80 games. Marte's 27 stolen bases also rank No. 2 among all MLB players entering Saturday's action.

Player	AVG	HR	RBI	OBP
Player	W-L	ERA	WHIP	SO/9
Starling Marte	.316	6	32	.360
Jay Bruce	.265	18	62	.313
Dexter Fowler	.290	7	28	.398
Yoenis Cespedes	.302	21	52	.372
Drew Pomeranz	8-7	2.47	1.059	10.1
Noah Syndergaard	9-4	2.56	1.079	10.9

As for Bruce, the Reds slugger will make his third-career All-Star appearance after clubbing 18 home runs and driving in 62 runs through his first 81 games of the season. However, Bruce's batting average of .265 is what's really worth writing home about.

Coming off consecutive seasons in which he batted lower than .230, Bruce has turned the corner and displayed a touch more discipline for the rebuilding Reds.

Finally, Pomeranz will take over for Syndergaard and have the pleasure of pitching in front of a home crowd at Petco Park.

Though the 27-year-old is just 8-7 in 17 starts, he's posted a stellar 2.47 ERA while striking out what would amount to a career-best 10.1 batters per nine innings.

The All-Star Game is slated to start at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and ESPN.com.