SAN FRANCISCO — Gorkys Hernandez has been a revelation for the Giants this year, posting a .284 average with 10 home runs, his career high at any level of professional baseball. He has also spent a good portion of the year as the team’s leadoff hitter and center fielder, helping to jumpstart an offense that often under-produced during a 64-98 2017 season.
With Hernandez’s improvement and the stagnation of outfield production in the National League, Bochy thinks Hernandez deserves serious consideration for a spot in the 2018 All-Star Game.
“Well, I think he’s going to be considered this year,” Bochy said. “You look at the home runs, he’s in double figures now, and the way he’s been playing, you never know. So I can tell you probably Dave Roberts, when he gets some picks, he’ll do all of his homework, he’ll notice the numbers on what Gorkys has been doing. But you look at the outfield, there’s not a lot of guys having huge years out there, so he’s going to get considered.”
Under current All-Star Game selection rules, fan voting determines the game’s position player starters, while reserve position players and pitchers are voted in by a composite vote of players and the commissioner’s office. Injury replacements are also selected by commissioner’s office instead of each team’s manager, a rule change enacted prior to the 2017 All-Star Game in an attempt to prevent homerism. Nevertheless, if Bochy thinks Dave Roberts would have given Hernandez a look, it’s quite possible that the players and commissioner’s office will as well.
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